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BIDU or GOOG: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Internet - Services sector have probably already heard of Baidu Inc. (BIDU - Free Report) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOG - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Baidu Inc. and Alphabet Inc. are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This means that BIDU's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. 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.

The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

BIDU currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.43, while GOOG has a forward P/E of 23. We also note that BIDU has a PEG ratio of 0.26. 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. GOOG currently has a PEG ratio of 1.59.

Another notable valuation metric for BIDU is its P/B ratio of 1.33. 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, GOOG has a P/B of 6.05.

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

BIDU sticks out from GOOG in both our Zacks Rank and Style Scores models, so value investors will likely feel that BIDU is the better option right now.


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