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LTHM vs. LIN: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Chemical - Specialty sector have probably already heard of Livent and Linde (LIN - 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.

Livent has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Linde has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that LTHM'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 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.

Our Value category highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

LTHM currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10, while LIN has a forward P/E of 26.87. We also note that LTHM has a PEG ratio of 0.29. 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. LIN currently has a PEG ratio of 2.57.

Another notable valuation metric for LTHM is its P/B ratio of 2.31. 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, LIN has a P/B of 4.47.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to LTHM's Value grade of B and LIN's Value grade of C.

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


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