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NGG or NEE: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Utility - Electric Power stocks are likely familiar with National Grid (NGG - Free Report) and NextEra Energy (NEE - 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.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

National Grid has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while NextEra Energy has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that NGG's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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 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.

NGG currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.98, while NEE has a forward P/E of 27.06. We also note that NGG has a PEG ratio of 2.14. 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. NEE currently has a PEG ratio of 2.80.

Another notable valuation metric for NGG is its P/B ratio of 1.58. 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, NEE has a P/B of 3.59.

These metrics, and several others, help NGG earn a Value grade of B, while NEE has been given a Value grade of D.

NGG 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 NGG is likely the superior value option right now.


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NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE) - free report >>

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