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URI vs. ROAD: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Building Products - Miscellaneous sector have probably already heard of United Rentals (URI - Free Report) and Construction Partners (ROAD - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to take a closer look.

The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive 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.

Right now, United Rentals is sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Construction Partners has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy). This means that URI'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 are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when 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.

URI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10, while ROAD has a forward P/E of 73.09. We also note that URI has a PEG ratio of 0.57. 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. ROAD currently has a PEG ratio of 1.98.

Another notable valuation metric for URI is its P/B ratio of 3.67. 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, ROAD has a P/B of 3.69.

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

URI is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that URI is likely the superior value option right now.


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