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SWDBY or BSAC: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Banks - Foreign stocks are likely familiar with Swedbank AB (SWDBY - Free Report) and Banco Santander-Chile (BSAC - 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Swedbank AB has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Banco Santander-Chile has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that SWDBY'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 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.

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.

SWDBY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 8.35, while BSAC has a forward P/E of 8.76. We also note that SWDBY has a PEG ratio of 1.43. 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. BSAC currently has a PEG ratio of 1.99.

Another notable valuation metric for SWDBY is its P/B ratio of 1.25. 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, BSAC has a P/B of 1.70.

These metrics, and several others, help SWDBY earn a Value grade of B, while BSAC has been given a Value grade of C.

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


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