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ARCB or JBHT: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Transportation - Truck sector have probably already heard of ArcBest (ARCB - Free Report) and JB Hunt (JBHT - 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.

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 puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

ArcBest has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while JB Hunt has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that ARCB likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than JBHT has recently. 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.

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.

ARCB currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17.25, while JBHT has a forward P/E of 30.01. We also note that ARCB has a PEG ratio of 0.36. 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. JBHT currently has a PEG ratio of 1.89.

Another notable valuation metric for ARCB is its P/B ratio of 2.18. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, JBHT has a P/B of 5.58.

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

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

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