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ARCB vs. JBHT: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Transportation - Truck sector have probably already heard of ArcBest (ARCB - Free Report) and JB Hunt (JBHT - Free Report) . 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.

ArcBest and JB Hunt are sporting Zacks Ranks of #1 (Strong Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This means that ARCB's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. 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.

ARCB currently has a forward P/E ratio of 6.55, while JBHT has a forward P/E of 19.84. We also note that ARCB has a PEG ratio of 0.51. 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. JBHT currently has a PEG ratio of 1.32.

Another notable valuation metric for ARCB is its P/B ratio of 2.03. 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, JBHT has a P/B of 5.75.

Based on these metrics and many more, ARCB holds a Value grade of B, while JBHT has a Value grade of C.

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


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J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT) - free report >>

ArcBest Corporation (ARCB) - free report >>

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