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ATCO vs. TROW: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Financial - Investment Management stocks are likely familiar with Atlas and T. Rowe Price (TROW - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Atlas and T. Rowe Price are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that ATCO likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than TROW 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.

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.

ATCO currently has a forward P/E ratio of 8.11, while TROW has a forward P/E of 16.33. We also note that ATCO has a PEG ratio of 0.29. 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. TROW currently has a PEG ratio of 1.81.

Another notable valuation metric for ATCO is its P/B ratio of 1.01. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, TROW has a P/B of 5.67.

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

ATCO stands above TROW thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that ATCO is the superior value option right now.


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