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UTI vs. PWSC: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors with an interest in Schools stocks have likely encountered both Universal Technical Institute (UTI - Free Report) and PowerSchool Holdings (PWSC - 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.

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 proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Right now, both Universal Technical Institute and PowerSchool Holdings are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is only part of the picture 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.

UTI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.71, while PWSC has a forward P/E of 22.29. We also note that UTI has a PEG ratio of 1.25. 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. PWSC currently has a PEG ratio of 2.02.

Another notable valuation metric for UTI is its P/B ratio of 1.32. 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, PWSC has a P/B of 1.99.

These metrics, and several others, help UTI earn a Value grade of B, while PWSC has been given a Value grade of F.

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


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