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PNC or NTRS: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Banks - Major Regional stocks have likely encountered both The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc (PNC - Free Report) and Northern Trust Corporation (NTRS - 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.

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc and Northern Trust Corporation are both sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that these stocks have improving earnings outlooks. 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 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.

PNC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.41, while NTRS has a forward P/E of 13.75. We also note that PNC has a PEG ratio of 1.77. 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. NTRS currently has a PEG ratio of 4.15.

Another notable valuation metric for PNC is its P/B ratio of 1.23. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, NTRS has a P/B of 1.58.

These metrics, and several others, help PNC earn a Value grade of B, while NTRS has been given a Value grade of F.

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


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The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc (PNC) - free report >>

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