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AXS or CINF: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Insurance - Property and Casualty sector have probably already heard of Axis Capital (AXS - Free Report) and Cincinnati Financial (CINF - 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.

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 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.

Axis Capital has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Cincinnati Financial has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that AXS is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

AXS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 7.01, while CINF has a forward P/E of 22.18. We also note that AXS has a PEG ratio of 1.40. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. CINF currently has a PEG ratio of 1.44.

Another notable valuation metric for AXS is its P/B ratio of 1.05. 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, CINF has a P/B of 1.50.

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

AXS stands above CINF thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that AXS is the superior value option right now.


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