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NHYDY vs. ESAB: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication stocks are likely familiar with Norsk Hydro ASA (NHYDY - Free Report) and Esab (ESAB - 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 is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

Currently, both Norsk Hydro ASA and Esab are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

Value investors are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.

The Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.

NHYDY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.42, while ESAB has a forward P/E of 14.57. We also note that NHYDY has a PEG ratio of 0.48. 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. ESAB currently has a PEG ratio of 8.94.

Another notable valuation metric for NHYDY is its P/B ratio of 1.28. 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, ESAB has a P/B of 2.47.

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

Both NHYDY and ESAB are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that NHYDY is the superior value option right now.


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