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ETR vs. CNP: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Utility - Electric Power sector might want to consider either Entergy (ETR - Free Report) or CenterPoint Energy (CNP - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

Entergy and CenterPoint Energy are both sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. This means that both companies have witnessed positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

ETR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17.03, while CNP has a forward P/E of 21.26. We also note that ETR has a PEG ratio of 2.53. 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. CNP currently has a PEG ratio of 5.47.

Another notable valuation metric for ETR is its P/B ratio of 1.88. 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, CNP has a P/B of 2.02.

These metrics, and several others, help ETR earn a Value grade of B, while CNP has been given a Value grade of D.

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


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