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PTR vs. CVX: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors with an interest in Oil and Gas - Integrated - International stocks have likely encountered both PetroChina and Chevron (CVX - 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.

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.

PetroChina has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Chevron has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that PTR likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than CVX has recently. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

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.

PTR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 5.99, while CVX has a forward P/E of 13.70. We also note that PTR has a PEG ratio of 0.12. 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. CVX currently has a PEG ratio of 2.48.

Another notable valuation metric for PTR is its P/B ratio of 0.38. 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, CVX has a P/B of 1.61.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to PTR's Value grade of A and CVX's Value grade of D.

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


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