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SIGI vs. PGR: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Insurance - Property and Casualty sector have probably already heard of Selective Insurance (SIGI - Free Report) and Progressive (PGR - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Selective Insurance and Progressive are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This means that SIGI'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 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 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.

SIGI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.47, while PGR has a forward P/E of 22.13. We also note that SIGI has a PEG ratio of 0.77. 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. PGR currently has a PEG ratio of 0.93.

Another notable valuation metric for SIGI is its P/B ratio of 2.46. 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, PGR has a P/B of 5.48.

Based on these metrics and many more, SIGI holds a Value grade of B, while PGR has a Value grade of C.

SIGI 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 SIGI is likely the superior value option right now.


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The Progressive Corporation (PGR) - free report >>

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