Back to top

Image: Bigstock

ENS vs. ETN: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in Manufacturing - Electronics stocks are likely familiar with EnerSys (ENS - Free Report) and Eaton (ETN - 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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, both EnerSys and Eaton are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). This means that both companies have witnessed positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

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.

ENS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.42, while ETN has a forward P/E of 25.23. We also note that ENS has a PEG ratio of 0.89. 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. ETN currently has a PEG ratio of 2.17.

Another notable valuation metric for ENS is its P/B ratio of 2.35. 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, ETN has a P/B of 4.93.

These metrics, and several others, help ENS earn a Value grade of A, while ETN has been given a Value grade of C.

Both ENS and ETN are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that ENS is the superior value option right now.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Eaton Corporation, PLC (ETN) - free report >>

Enersys (ENS) - free report >>

Published in