Back to top

Image: Bigstock

CX or MLM: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in Building Products - Concrete and Aggregates stocks are likely familiar with Cemex (CX - Free Report) and Martin Marietta (MLM - 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.

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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Cemex and Martin Marietta are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that CX likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than MLM has recently. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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 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.

CX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.68, while MLM has a forward P/E of 27.23. We also note that CX has a PEG ratio of 0.25. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. MLM currently has a PEG ratio of 2.20.

Another notable valuation metric for CX is its P/B ratio of 1.17. 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, MLM has a P/B of 3.57.

Based on these metrics and many more, CX holds a Value grade of A, while MLM has a Value grade of C.

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


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Cemex S.A.B. de C.V. (CX) - free report >>

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (MLM) - free report >>

Published in