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SSUMY or ITT: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Diversified Operations sector might want to consider either Sumitomo Corp. (SSUMY - Free Report) or ITT (ITT - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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.

Currently, Sumitomo Corp. has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while ITT has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that SSUMY has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

SSUMY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.29, while ITT has a forward P/E of 29.43. We also note that SSUMY has a PEG ratio of 1.27. 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. ITT currently has a PEG ratio of 2.19.

Another notable valuation metric for SSUMY is its P/B ratio of 1.53. 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, ITT has a P/B of 4.61.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to SSUMY's Value grade of B and ITT's Value grade of D.

SSUMY is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that SSUMY is likely the superior value option right now.

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