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AVNS vs. EW: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Medical - Instruments sector have probably already heard of Avanos Medical (AVNS - Free Report) and Edwards Lifesciences (EW - 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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Currently, Avanos Medical has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Edwards Lifesciences has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that AVNS'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 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.

AVNS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.47, while EW has a forward P/E of 36.36. We also note that AVNS has a PEG ratio of 1.25. 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. EW currently has a PEG ratio of 5.26.

Another notable valuation metric for AVNS is its P/B ratio of 0.91. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, EW has a P/B of 9.29.

These metrics, and several others, help AVNS earn a Value grade of A, while EW has been given a Value grade of D.

AVNS has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than EW, so it seems like value investors will conclude that AVNS is the superior option right now.


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Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (EW) - free report >>

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