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DOW vs. APD: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Chemical - Diversified sector have probably already heard of Dow Inc. (DOW - Free Report) and Air Products and Chemicals (APD - 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.

The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. 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.

Dow Inc. and Air Products and Chemicals are sporting Zacks Ranks of #1 (Strong Buy) and #4 (Sell), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that DOW has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

DOW currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.15, while APD has a forward P/E of 31.31. We also note that DOW has a PEG ratio of 0.78. 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. APD currently has a PEG ratio of 3.82.

Another notable valuation metric for DOW is its P/B ratio of 3.65. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, APD has a P/B of 4.78.

These metrics, and several others, help DOW earn a Value grade of B, while APD has been given a Value grade of C.

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


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