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GLW or VCRA: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Communication - Components sector might want to consider either Corning (GLW - Free Report) or Vocera Communications . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's 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 favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Corning has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Vocera Communications has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that GLW is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is only part of the picture 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.

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.

GLW currently has a forward P/E ratio of 20.46, while VCRA has a forward P/E of 60.41. We also note that GLW has a PEG ratio of 1.16. 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. VCRA currently has a PEG ratio of 4.17.

Another notable valuation metric for GLW is its P/B ratio of 3.27. 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, VCRA has a P/B of 7.92.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to GLW's Value grade of B and VCRA's Value grade of D.

GLW 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 GLW is likely the superior value option right now.


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