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CNMD or ALGN: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Medical - Dental Supplies sector might want to consider either Conmed (CNMD - Free Report) or Align Technology (ALGN - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Conmed has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Align Technology has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that CNMD likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than ALGN has recently. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks 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.

CNMD currently has a forward P/E ratio of 26.38, while ALGN has a forward P/E of 28.97. We also note that CNMD has a PEG ratio of 0.94. 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. ALGN currently has a PEG ratio of 1.65.

Another notable valuation metric for CNMD is its P/B ratio of 3.61. 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, ALGN has a P/B of 5.34.

These metrics, and several others, help CNMD earn a Value grade of B, while ALGN has been given a Value grade of C.

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


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