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IX or FUTU: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Financial - Miscellaneous Services sector have probably already heard of Orix (IX - Free Report) and Futu Holdings Limited Sponsored ADR (FUTU - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's 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 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.

Orix has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Futu Holdings Limited Sponsored ADR has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that IX likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than FUTU has recently. But this is only part of the picture 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.

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.

IX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 7.20, while FUTU has a forward P/E of 11.64. We also note that IX has a PEG ratio of 0.72. 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. FUTU currently has a PEG ratio of 1.22.

Another notable valuation metric for IX is its P/B ratio of 1.46. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, FUTU has a P/B of 2.79.

These metrics, and several others, help IX earn a Value grade of A, while FUTU has been given a Value grade of C.

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

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