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LXFR or CR: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Manufacturing - General Industrial stocks have likely encountered both Luxfer (LXFR - Free Report) and Crane (CR - Free Report) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. 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, Luxfer is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Crane has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that LXFR's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. 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 highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

LXFR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.42, while CR has a forward P/E of 27.41. We also note that LXFR has a PEG ratio of 2.06. 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. CR currently has a PEG ratio of 2.26.

Another notable valuation metric for LXFR is its P/B ratio of 1.35. 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, CR has a P/B of 5.49.

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

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


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