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TGT vs. TJX: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Retail - Discount Stores stocks are likely familiar with Target (TGT - Free Report) and TJX (TJX - 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Right now, both Target and TJX are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that these stocks have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

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.

TGT currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.36, while TJX has a forward P/E of 26.62. We also note that TGT has a PEG ratio of 1.26. 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. TJX currently has a PEG ratio of 2.91.

Another notable valuation metric for TGT is its P/B ratio of 4.47. 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, TJX has a P/B of 16.40.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to TGT's Value grade of A and TJX's Value grade of C.

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


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