Investors interested in stocks from the Medical Services sector have probably already heard of PACS Group, Inc. (PACS – Free Report) and HealthEquity (HQY – 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.
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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.
PACS Group, Inc. and HealthEquity are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This means that PACS’s earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.
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.
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.
PACS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.90, while HQY has a forward P/E of 30.57. We also note that PACS has a PEG ratio of 0.86. 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. HQY currently has a PEG ratio of 1.25.
Another notable valuation metric for PACS is its P/B ratio of 3.45. 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, HQY has a P/B of 3.90.
These are just a few of the metrics contributing to PACS’s Value grade of A and HQY’s Value grade of C.
PACS stands above HQY thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that PACS is the superior value option right now.
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