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GBX vs. WAB: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Transportation - Equipment and Leasing sector might want to consider either Greenbrier Companies (GBX - Free Report) or Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies (WAB - 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, both Greenbrier Companies and Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). 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. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks that they believe are undervalued at their 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.

GBX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.55, while WAB has a forward P/E of 21.57. We also note that GBX has a PEG ratio of 0.62. 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. WAB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.34.

Another notable valuation metric for GBX is its P/B ratio of 1.07. 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, WAB has a P/B of 2.66.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to GBX's Value grade of A and WAB's Value grade of D.

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


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Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (The) (GBX) - free report >>

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation (WAB) - free report >>

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