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UGP vs. WMB: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Oil and Gas - Production and Pipelines stocks are likely familiar with Ultrapar Participacoes S.A. (UGP - Free Report) and Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (WMB - 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Ultrapar Participacoes S.A. has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Williams Companies, Inc. (The) has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that UGP likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than WMB has recently. 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.

UGP currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.03, while WMB has a forward P/E of 31.62. We also note that UGP has a PEG ratio of 1.08. 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. WMB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.28.

Another notable valuation metric for UGP is its P/B ratio of 1.85. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, WMB has a P/B of 6.11.

Based on these metrics and many more, UGP holds a Value grade of A, while WMB has a Value grade of D.

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

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