GEF vs. ATR: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

ATR GEF

Investors interested in Containers - Paper and Packaging stocks are likely familiar with Greif (GEF - Free Report) and AptarGroup (ATR - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Greif and AptarGroup are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #4 (Sell), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that GEF has an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture 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.

Our Value category highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

GEF currently has a forward P/E ratio of 13.34, while ATR has a forward P/E of 33.49. We also note that GEF has a PEG ratio of 1.33. 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. ATR currently has a PEG ratio of 4.78.

Another notable valuation metric for GEF is its P/B ratio of 2.14. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, ATR has a P/B of 4.41.

Based on these metrics and many more, GEF holds a Value grade of A, while ATR has a Value grade of C.

GEF sticks out from ATR in both our Zacks Rank and Style Scores models, so value investors will likely feel that GEF is the better option right now.

Infrastructure Stock Boom to Sweep America

A massive push to rebuild the crumbling U.S. infrastructure will soon be underway. It’s bipartisan, urgent, and inevitable. Trillions will be spent. Fortunes will be made.

The only question is “Will you get into the right stocks early when their growth potential is greatest?”

Zacks has released a Special Report to help you do just that, and today it’s free. Discover 5 special companies that look to gain the most from construction and repair to roads, bridges, and buildings, plus cargo hauling and energy transformation on an almost unimaginable scale.

Download FREE: How To Profit From Trillions On Spending For Infrastructure >>