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CDW or NOW: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Computers - IT Services stocks are likely familiar with CDW (CDW - Free Report) and ServiceNow (NOW - 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.

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 Zacks Rank is a proven strategy that targets companies with positive earnings estimate revision trends, while our Style Scores work to grade companies based on specific traits.

CDW and ServiceNow are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that CDW is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. 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.

CDW currently has a forward P/E ratio of 21.99, while NOW has a forward P/E of 117.17. We also note that CDW has a PEG ratio of 1.68. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. NOW currently has a PEG ratio of 4.14.

Another notable valuation metric for CDW is its P/B ratio of 15.95. 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, NOW has a P/B of 38.75.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to CDW's Value grade of B and NOW's Value grade of D.

CDW 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 CDW is likely the superior value option right now.


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