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MKSI vs. ROK: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Electronics - Miscellaneous Products sector might want to consider either MKS (MKSI - Free Report) or Rockwell Automation (ROK - 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.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

MKS and Rockwell Automation are both sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) right now. This means that both companies have witnessed positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

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.

MKSI currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.85, while ROK has a forward P/E of 28.90. We also note that MKSI has a PEG ratio of 0.52. 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. ROK currently has a PEG ratio of 2.04.

Another notable valuation metric for MKSI is its P/B ratio of 5.6. 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, ROK has a P/B of 13.73.

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

Both MKSI and ROK are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that MKSI is the superior value option right now.

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