Back to top

Image: Bigstock

MOS vs. NTR: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in Fertilizers stocks are likely familiar with Mosaic (MOS) and Nutrien (NTR). But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

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

Currently, both Mosaic and Nutrien are holding a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

MOS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 5.87, while NTR has a forward P/E of 8.09. We also note that MOS has a PEG ratio of 0.84. 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. NTR currently has a PEG ratio of 1.01.

Another notable valuation metric for MOS is its P/B ratio of 2.28. 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, NTR has a P/B of 2.45.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to MOS's Value grade of B and NTR's Value grade of C.

Both MOS and NTR are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that MOS is the superior value option right now.

Published in