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ATTO or PAYX: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Outsourcing stocks are likely familiar with Atento and Paychex (PAYX - Free Report) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Atento has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Paychex has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that ATTO likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than PAYX has recently. But this is only part of the picture 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 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.

ATTO currently has a forward P/E ratio of 16.86, while PAYX has a forward P/E of 32.56. We also note that ATTO has a PEG ratio of 1.41. 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. PAYX currently has a PEG ratio of 4.07.

Another notable valuation metric for ATTO is its P/B ratio of 4.97. 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, PAYX has a P/B of 12.66.

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

ATTO 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 ATTO is likely the superior value option right now.


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