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FLEX vs. GRMN: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Electronics - Miscellaneous Products stocks are likely familiar with Flex (FLEX) and Garmin (GRMN). But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's 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.

Flex has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Garmin has a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that FLEX has an improving earnings outlook. 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.

FLEX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.87, while GRMN has a forward P/E of 19.80. We also note that FLEX has a PEG ratio of 0.66. 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. GRMN currently has a PEG ratio of 2.91.

Another notable valuation metric for FLEX is its P/B ratio of 2.39. 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, GRMN has a P/B of 3.73.

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

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

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