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KE vs. BELFB: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Electronics - Miscellaneous Products stocks are likely familiar with Kimball Electronics (KE - Free Report) and Bel Fuse (BELFB - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, both Kimball Electronics and Bel Fuse are holding a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

KE currently has a forward P/E ratio of 21.65, while BELFB has a forward P/E of 22.61. We also note that KE has a PEG ratio of 1.08. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. BELFB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.51.

Another notable valuation metric for KE is its P/B ratio of 1.24. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, BELFB has a P/B of 4.55.

These metrics, and several others, help KE earn a Value grade of A, while BELFB has been given a Value grade of D.

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


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