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RTO vs. AFRM: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors interested in Business - Services stocks are likely familiar with Rentokil Initial PLC (RTO - Free Report) and Affirm Holdings (AFRM - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, Rentokil Initial PLC is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Affirm Holdings has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This means that RTO's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

RTO currently has a forward P/E ratio of 17.43, while AFRM has a forward P/E of 125.37. We also note that RTO has a PEG ratio of 1.43. 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. AFRM currently has a PEG ratio of 8.59.

Another notable valuation metric for RTO is its P/B ratio of 2.75. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, AFRM has a P/B of 4.90.

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

RTO 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 RTO is likely the superior value option right now.


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Affirm Holdings, Inc. (AFRM) - free report >>

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