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ADS or FLT: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Financial Transaction Services sector have probably already heard of Alliance Data Systems and FleetCor Technologies . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to take a closer look.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Right now, Alliance Data Systems is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while FleetCor Technologies has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that ADS is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

The Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.

ADS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 6.23, while FLT has a forward P/E of 24.50. We also note that ADS has a PEG ratio of 1.01. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. FLT currently has a PEG ratio of 2.04.

Another notable valuation metric for ADS is its P/B ratio of 2.13. 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, FLT has a P/B of 8.06.

These metrics, and several others, help ADS earn a Value grade of A, while FLT has been given a Value grade of C.

ADS is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that ADS is likely the superior value option right now.

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