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ASHTY vs. GWW: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Industrial Services sector might want to consider either Ashtead Group PLC (ASHTY - Free Report) or W.W. Grainger (GWW - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to 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 proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Ashtead Group PLC has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while W.W. Grainger has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that ASHTY has an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

Our Value category highlights undervalued companies by looking at a variety of key metrics, including the popular P/E ratio, as well as the P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that have been used by value investors for years.

ASHTY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.24, while GWW has a forward P/E of 16.26. We also note that ASHTY has a PEG ratio of 0.56. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. GWW currently has a PEG ratio of 1.52.

Another notable valuation metric for ASHTY is its P/B ratio of 3.79. 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, GWW has a P/B of 7.52.

Based on these metrics and many more, ASHTY holds a Value grade of A, while GWW has a Value grade of C.

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


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W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) - free report >>

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