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GPK vs. PKG: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Containers - Paper and Packaging stocks are likely familiar with Graphic Packaging (GPK - Free Report) and Packaging Corp. (PKG - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Both Graphic Packaging and Packaging Corp. have a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

Our Value category highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

GPK currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.89, while PKG has a forward P/E of 13.79. We also note that GPK has a PEG ratio of 0.40. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. PKG currently has a PEG ratio of 2.76.

Another notable valuation metric for GPK is its P/B ratio of 3.33. 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, PKG has a P/B of 3.99.

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

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


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