DFS vs. FCFS: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

DFS FCFS

Investors looking for stocks in the Financial - Consumer Loans sector might want to consider either Discover (DFS - Free Report) or First Cash Financial Services (FCFS - 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.

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.

Currently, both Discover and First Cash Financial Services are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). 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 only part of the picture for value investors.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

DFS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 8.89, while FCFS has a forward P/E of 24.01. We also note that DFS has a PEG ratio of 1.19. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. FCFS currently has a PEG ratio of 1.60.

Another notable valuation metric for DFS is its P/B ratio of 2.36. 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, FCFS has a P/B of 3.08.

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

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

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