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III vs. ACN: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Consulting Services stocks are likely familiar with Information Services Group (III - Free Report) and Accenture (ACN - 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.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Currently, Information Services Group has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Accenture has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that III's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle 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.

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.

III currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.27, while ACN has a forward P/E of 24.49. We also note that III has a PEG ratio of 0.70. 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. ACN currently has a PEG ratio of 2.45.

Another notable valuation metric for III is its P/B ratio of 2.81. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, ACN has a P/B of 8.35.

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

III 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 III is likely the superior value option right now.


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