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GEN or APP: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Technology Services sector have probably already heard of Gen Digital (GEN - Free Report) and AppLovin (APP - 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.

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 is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

Gen Digital has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while AppLovin has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that GEN 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 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 grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.

GEN currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.58, while APP has a forward P/E of 30.57. We also note that GEN has a PEG ratio of 0.92. 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. APP currently has a PEG ratio of 1.53.

Another notable valuation metric for GEN is its P/B ratio of 5.51. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, APP has a P/B of 14.61.

Based on these metrics and many more, GEN holds a Value grade of B, while APP has a Value grade of C.

GEN has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than APP, so it seems like value investors will conclude that GEN is the superior option right now.


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