Back to top

Image: Bigstock

KEY vs. NTRS: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in stocks from the Banks - Major Regional sector have probably already heard of KeyCorp (KEY - Free Report) and Northern Trust Corporation (NTRS - 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, KeyCorp has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Northern Trust Corporation has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that KEY likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than NTRS has recently. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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 Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors.

KEY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.11, while NTRS has a forward P/E of 14.39. We also note that KEY has a PEG ratio of 0.74. 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. NTRS currently has a PEG ratio of 0.88.

Another notable valuation metric for KEY is its P/B ratio of 1.39. 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, NTRS has a P/B of 2.51.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to KEY's Value grade of B and NTRS's Value grade of D.

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

Published in