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BRC vs. SSTI: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in stocks from the Security and Safety Services sector have probably already heard of Brady (BRC - Free Report) and SoundThinking (SSTI - 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.

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, Brady is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while SoundThinking has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that BRC has an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

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 Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.

BRC currently has a forward P/E ratio of 13.62, while SSTI has a forward P/E of 210.87. We also note that BRC has a PEG ratio of 1.95. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. SSTI currently has a PEG ratio of 7.03.

Another notable valuation metric for BRC is its P/B ratio of 2.37. 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, SSTI has a P/B of 4.93.

These metrics, and several others, help BRC earn a Value grade of B, while SSTI has been given a Value grade of D.

BRC 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 BRC is likely the superior value option right now.


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