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PFGC vs. SFM: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Food - Natural Foods Products sector have probably already heard of Performance Food Group (PFGC - Free Report) and Sprouts Farmers (SFM - 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.

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 puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Both Performance Food Group and Sprouts Farmers have 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 just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

PFGC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 16.16, while SFM has a forward P/E of 22.35. We also note that PFGC has a PEG ratio of 0.98. 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. SFM currently has a PEG ratio of 2.40.

Another notable valuation metric for PFGC is its P/B ratio of 2.78. 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, SFM has a P/B of 5.83.

Based on these metrics and many more, PFGC holds a Value grade of A, while SFM has a Value grade of C.

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


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Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (SFM) - free report >>

Performance Food Group Company (PFGC) - free report >>

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