BEN or TROW: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

BEN TROW

Investors with an interest in Financial - Investment Management stocks have likely encountered both Franklin Resources (BEN - Free Report) and T. Rowe Price (TROW - 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.

Franklin Resources and T. Rowe Price are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that BEN is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. 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.

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.

BEN currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.64, while TROW has a forward P/E of 14.47. We also note that BEN has a PEG ratio of 0.86. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. TROW currently has a PEG ratio of 1.36.

Another notable valuation metric for BEN is its P/B ratio of 1.45. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, TROW has a P/B of 5.17.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to BEN's Value grade of A and TROW's Value grade of C.

BEN 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 BEN is likely the superior value option right now.

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