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MAN vs. RHI: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors with an interest in Staffing Firms stocks have likely encountered both ManpowerGroup (MAN - Free Report) and Robert Half (RHI - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Both ManpowerGroup and Robert Half have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. This means that both companies have witnessed positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

MAN currently has a forward P/E ratio of 19.63, while RHI has a forward P/E of 21.73. We also note that MAN has a PEG ratio of 0.91. 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. RHI currently has a PEG ratio of 1.40.

Another notable valuation metric for MAN is its P/B ratio of 2.80. 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, RHI has a P/B of 8.36.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to MAN's Value grade of A and RHI's Value grade of C.

Both MAN and RHI are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that MAN is the superior value option right now.


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ManpowerGroup Inc. (MAN) - free report >>

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