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VEOEY vs. AWK: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors with an interest in Utility - Water Supply stocks have likely encountered both Veolia Environnement SA (VEOEY - Free Report) and American Water Works (AWK - 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.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Right now, Veolia Environnement SA is sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while American Water Works has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that VEOEY is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. 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.

VEOEY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 6.60, while AWK has a forward P/E of 24.59. We also note that VEOEY has a PEG ratio of 0.81. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. AWK currently has a PEG ratio of 3.01.

Another notable valuation metric for VEOEY is its P/B ratio of 1.23. 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, AWK has a P/B of 2.37.

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

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


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American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK) - free report >>

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