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COLL vs. ZTS: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Medical - Drugs stocks are likely familiar with Collegium Pharmaceutical (COLL - Free Report) and Zoetis (ZTS - 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.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Collegium Pharmaceutical has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Zoetis has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that COLL is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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 highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

COLL currently has a forward P/E ratio of 4.28, while ZTS has a forward P/E of 31.08. We also note that COLL has a PEG ratio of 0.21. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. ZTS currently has a PEG ratio of 2.59.

Another notable valuation metric for COLL is its P/B ratio of 4.57. 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, ZTS has a P/B of 17.68.

These metrics, and several others, help COLL earn a Value grade of A, while ZTS has been given a Value grade of C.

COLL 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 COLL is likely the superior value option right now.


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