REGN vs. LGND: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

REGN LGND

Investors with an interest in Medical - Biomedical and Genetics stocks have likely encountered both Regeneron (REGN - Free Report) and Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND - 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.

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 Zacks Rank is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

Regeneron has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that REGN's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.

Our Value category grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.

REGN currently has a forward P/E ratio of 19.78, while LGND has a forward P/E of 46.79. We also note that REGN has a PEG ratio of 1.22. 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. LGND currently has a PEG ratio of 1.87.

Another notable valuation metric for REGN is its P/B ratio of 6.13. 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, LGND has a P/B of 10.30.

Based on these metrics and many more, REGN holds a Value grade of B, while LGND has a Value grade of D.

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

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