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VEOEY vs. AWK: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Utility - Water Supply stocks are likely familiar with Veolia Environnement SA (VEOEY - Free Report) and American Water Works (AWK - Free Report) . But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. 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.

Veolia Environnement SA and American Water Works are sporting Zacks Ranks of #1 (Strong Buy) and #2 (Buy), respectively, right now. This means that VEOEY's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

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.

VEOEY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 6.97, while AWK has a forward P/E of 27.10. We also note that VEOEY has a PEG ratio of 0.73. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. AWK currently has a PEG ratio of 3.39.

Another notable valuation metric for VEOEY is its P/B ratio of 1.39. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, AWK has a P/B of 2.74.

Based on these metrics and many more, VEOEY holds a Value grade of A, while AWK has a Value grade of D.

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


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American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK) - free report >>

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