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CRM or ADSK: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Internet - Software sector have probably already heard of Salesforce (CRM - Free Report) and Autodesk (ADSK - 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 favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Salesforce has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Autodesk has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that CRM is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

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.

CRM currently has a forward P/E ratio of 13.31, while ADSK has a forward P/E of 21.32. We also note that CRM has a PEG ratio of 0.78. 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. ADSK currently has a PEG ratio of 1.37.

Another notable valuation metric for CRM is its P/B ratio of 4.77. 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, ADSK has a P/B of 16.63.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to CRM's Value grade of B and ADSK's Value grade of C.

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

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