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DLA vs. COLM: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Textile - Apparel stocks are likely familiar with Delta Apparel (DLA - Free Report) and Columbia Sportswear (COLM - 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.

Currently, Delta Apparel has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Columbia Sportswear has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that DLA is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

DLA currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17.62, while COLM has a forward P/E of 20.98. We also note that DLA has a PEG ratio of 1.17. 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. COLM currently has a PEG ratio of 1.88.

Another notable valuation metric for DLA is its P/B ratio of 1.10. 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, COLM has a P/B of 4.04.

Based on these metrics and many more, DLA holds a Value grade of B, while COLM has a Value grade of C.

DLA is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that DLA is likely the superior value option right now.


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