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IKTSY or FDS: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Business - Information Services stocks have likely encountered both INTERTEK GP (IKTSY - Free Report) and FactSet Research (FDS - 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Both INTERTEK GP and FactSet Research have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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 grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.

IKTSY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 20.26, while FDS has a forward P/E of 29.18. We also note that IKTSY has a PEG ratio of 2.06. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. FDS currently has a PEG ratio of 2.92.

Another notable valuation metric for IKTSY is its P/B ratio of 5.20. 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, FDS has a P/B of 12.30.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to IKTSY's Value grade of B and FDS's Value grade of C.

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


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FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS) - free report >>

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