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JAZZ or ZTS: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Medical - Drugs sector have probably already heard of Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ - Free Report) and Zoetis (ZTS - 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.

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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals and Zoetis are sporting Zacks Ranks of #1 (Strong Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that JAZZ has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

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.

JAZZ currently has a forward P/E ratio of 7.63, while ZTS has a forward P/E of 29.69. We also note that JAZZ has a PEG ratio of 0.68. 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. ZTS currently has a PEG ratio of 2.59.

Another notable valuation metric for JAZZ is its P/B ratio of 2.58. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, ZTS has a P/B of 15.14.

Based on these metrics and many more, JAZZ holds a Value grade of B, while ZTS has a Value grade of C.

JAZZ has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than ZTS, so it seems like value investors will conclude that JAZZ is the superior option right now.


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