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LCII vs. VC: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Automotive - Original Equipment sector have probably already heard of LCI (LCII - Free Report) and Visteon (VC - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Right now, LCI is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Visteon has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that LCII's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. 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.

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.

LCII currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.88, while VC has a forward P/E of 31.69. We also note that LCII has a PEG ratio of 1.18. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. VC currently has a PEG ratio of 2.88.

Another notable valuation metric for LCII is its P/B ratio of 3.41. 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, VC has a P/B of 4.43.

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

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


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