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BKR or CLB: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Oil and Gas - Field Services sector might want to consider either Baker Hughes (BKR - Free Report) or Core Laboratories (CLB - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to take a closer look.

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

Right now, Baker Hughes is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Core Laboratories has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that BKR likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than CLB has recently. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

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.

BKR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 15.97, while CLB has a forward P/E of 21.65. We also note that BKR has a PEG ratio of 0.57. 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. CLB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.

Another notable valuation metric for BKR is its P/B ratio of 2.15. 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, CLB has a P/B of 4.07.

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

BKR has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than CLB, so it seems like value investors will conclude that BKR is the superior option right now.


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