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PPC vs. HRL: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Food - Meat Products sector might want to consider either Pilgrim's Pride (PPC - Free Report) or Hormel Foods (HRL - 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.

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.

Currently, Pilgrim's Pride has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Hormel Foods has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that PPC is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

The Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.

PPC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.85, while HRL has a forward P/E of 27.55. We also note that PPC has a PEG ratio of 0.53. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. HRL currently has a PEG ratio of 4.52.

Another notable valuation metric for PPC is its P/B ratio of 2.38. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, HRL has a P/B of 3.95.

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

PPC 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 PPC is likely the superior value option right now.


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