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STRL vs. HWM: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors with an interest in Engineering - R and D Services stocks have likely encountered both Sterling Infrastructure (STRL - Free Report) and Howmet (HWM - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's 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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Sterling Infrastructure and Howmet are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (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 STRL has an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture 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.

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.

STRL currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.90, while HWM has a forward P/E of 22.89. We also note that STRL has a PEG ratio of 0.55. 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. HWM currently has a PEG ratio of 0.96.

Another notable valuation metric for STRL is its P/B ratio of 2.35. 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, HWM has a P/B of 5.07.

Based on these metrics and many more, STRL holds a Value grade of A, while HWM has a Value grade of D.

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


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Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL) - free report >>

Howmet Aerospace Inc. (HWM) - free report >>

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