ASH vs. NVZMY: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?
Investors with an interest in Chemical - Specialty stocks have likely encountered both Ashland (ASH) and Novozymes A/S (NVZMY). 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.
The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive 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.
Right now, both Ashland and Novozymes A/S are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is only part of the picture 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.
Our Value category grades stocks based on a number of key metrics, including the tried-and-true P/E ratio, the P/S ratio, earnings yield, and cash flow per share, as well as a variety of other fundamentals that value investors frequently use.
ASH currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17.93, while NVZMY has a forward P/E of 34.18. We also note that ASH has a PEG ratio of 0.79. 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. NVZMY currently has a PEG ratio of 3.51.
Another notable valuation metric for ASH is its P/B ratio of 1.38. 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, NVZMY has a P/B of 13.94.
These metrics, and several others, help ASH earn a Value grade of B, while NVZMY has been given a Value grade of F.
Both ASH and NVZMY are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that ASH is the superior value option right now.
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Ashland Inc. (ASH) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Novozymes A/S (NVZMY) : Free Stock Analysis Report