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III or ACN: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Consulting Services stocks have likely encountered both 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks 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. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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 Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

III currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.08, while ACN has a forward P/E of 23.30. We also note that III has a PEG ratio of 0.53. 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. ACN currently has a PEG ratio of 2.45.

Another notable valuation metric for III is its P/B ratio of 2.36. 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, ACN has a P/B of 7.11.

Based on these metrics and many more, III holds a Value grade of A, while ACN has a Value grade of C.

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


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