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SMFG or HDB: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors with an interest in Banks - Foreign stocks have likely encountered both Sumitomo Mitsui (SMFG - Free Report) and HDFC Bank (HDB - 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.

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 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.

Sumitomo Mitsui and HDFC Bank are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #4 (Sell), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that SMFG has an improving earnings outlook. 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.

SMFG currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.36, while HDB has a forward P/E of 22.30. We also note that SMFG has a PEG ratio of 0.89. 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. HDB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.76.

Another notable valuation metric for SMFG is its P/B ratio of 0.85. 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, HDB has a P/B of 2.85.

These metrics, and several others, help SMFG earn a Value grade of B, while HDB has been given a Value grade of D.

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


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