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CSR or AMH: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the REIT and Equity Trust - Residential sector have probably already heard of Centerspace (CSR - Free Report) and American Homes 4 Rent (AMH - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Centerspace has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while American Homes 4 Rent has a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that CSR is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

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 Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

CSR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.63, while AMH has a forward P/E of 20.99. We also note that CSR has a PEG ratio of 1.66. 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. AMH currently has a PEG ratio of 3.03.

Another notable valuation metric for CSR is its P/B ratio of 0.90. 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, AMH has a P/B of 1.66.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to CSR's Value grade of B and AMH's Value grade of F.

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


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