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TX vs. CMC: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Steel - Producers stocks are likely familiar with Ternium S.A. (TX - Free Report) and Commercial Metals (CMC - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

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 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, Ternium S.A. has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Commercial Metals has a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that TX has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its current share price levels.

The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

TX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.48, while CMC has a forward P/E of 12.16. We also note that TX has a PEG ratio of 0.20. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. CMC currently has a PEG ratio of 0.47.

Another notable valuation metric for TX is its P/B ratio of 0.6. 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, CMC has a P/B of 1.96.

Based on these metrics and many more, TX holds a Value grade of A, while CMC has a Value grade of C.

TX has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than CMC, so it seems like value investors will conclude that TX is the superior option right now.

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