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HSBC or NRDBY: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Banks - Foreign stocks are likely familiar with HSBC (HSBC - Free Report) and Nordea Bank AB (NRDBY - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

HSBC has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Nordea Bank AB has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that HSBC's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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 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.

HSBC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.40, while NRDBY has a forward P/E of 10.70. We also note that HSBC has a PEG ratio of 0.88. 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. NRDBY currently has a PEG ratio of 1.90.

Another notable valuation metric for HSBC is its P/B ratio of 1.41. 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, NRDBY has a P/B of 1.65.

Based on these metrics and many more, HSBC holds a Value grade of B, while NRDBY has a Value grade of D.

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

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