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BASFY vs. FMC: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors with an interest in Chemical - Diversified stocks have likely encountered both BASF SE (BASFY - Free Report) and FMC (FMC - 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 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.

Currently, BASF SE has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while FMC has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that BASFY is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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 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.

BASFY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 13.83, while FMC has a forward P/E of 15.45. We also note that BASFY has a PEG ratio of 0.96. 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. FMC currently has a PEG ratio of 1.15.

Another notable valuation metric for BASFY is its P/B ratio of 1.04. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, FMC has a P/B of 1.60.

Based on these metrics and many more, BASFY holds a Value grade of A, while FMC has a Value grade of C.

BASFY stands above FMC thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that BASFY is the superior value option right now.


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