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FHI or CNS: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Financial - Investment Management sector might want to consider either Federated Hermes (FHI - Free Report) or Cohen & Steers Inc (CNS - Free Report) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

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.

Currently, Federated Hermes has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Cohen & Steers Inc has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that FHI is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

FHI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.82, while CNS has a forward P/E of 24.30. We also note that FHI has a PEG ratio of 0.70. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. CNS currently has a PEG ratio of 2.50.

Another notable valuation metric for FHI is its P/B ratio of 3.7. 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, CNS has a P/B of 6.96.

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

FHI stands above CNS thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that FHI is the superior value option right now.


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