CIO or EGP: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

EGP CIO

Investors with an interest in REIT and Equity Trust - Other stocks have likely encountered both City Office REIT (CIO - Free Report) and EastGroup Properties (EGP - Free Report) . 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.

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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

City Office REIT and EastGroup Properties are both sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. 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.

CIO currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.77, while EGP has a forward P/E of 28.21. We also note that CIO has a PEG ratio of 1.80. 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. EGP currently has a PEG ratio of 3.37.

Another notable valuation metric for CIO is its P/B ratio of 2.32. 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, EGP has a P/B of 4.85.

These metrics, and several others, help CIO earn a Value grade of B, while EGP has been given a Value grade of F.

Both CIO and EGP are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that CIO is the superior value option right now.

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