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GTN vs. NXST: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Broadcast Radio and Television sector have probably already heard of Gray Television (GTN - Free Report) and Nexstar Broadcasting Group (NXST - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Gray Television has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Nexstar Broadcasting Group has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that GTN's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.

The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

GTN currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.66, while NXST has a forward P/E of 17.31. We also note that GTN has a PEG ratio of 1.57. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. NXST currently has a PEG ratio of 1.73.

Another notable valuation metric for GTN is its P/B ratio of 1.71. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, NXST has a P/B of 2.82.

These metrics, and several others, help GTN earn a Value grade of B, while NXST has been given a Value grade of C.

GTN has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than NXST, so it seems like value investors will conclude that GTN is the superior option right now.


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Nexstar Media Group, Inc (NXST) - free report >>

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