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CE vs. LTHM: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Chemical - Specialty sector might want to consider either Celanese (CE - Free Report) or Livent . 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.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great 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.

Celanese and Livent are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that CE 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 tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

CE currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.80, while LTHM has a forward P/E of 181.47. We also note that CE has a PEG ratio of 0.58. 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. LTHM currently has a PEG ratio of 3.77.

Another notable valuation metric for CE is its P/B ratio of 4.45. 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, LTHM has a P/B of 5.76.

Based on these metrics and many more, CE holds a Value grade of B, while LTHM has a Value grade of F.

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


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