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BMY vs. VRTX: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics sector might want to consider either Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY - Free Report) or Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX - 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.

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great 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.

Bristol Myers Squibb and Vertex Pharmaceuticals are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that BMY likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than VRTX has recently. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

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.

BMY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 62.67, while VRTX has a forward P/E of 1,098.93. We also note that BMY has a PEG ratio of 12.53. 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. VRTX currently has a PEG ratio of 87.91.

Another notable valuation metric for BMY is its P/B ratio of 5.75. 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, VRTX has a P/B of 8.23.

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

BMY is currently sporting an improving earnings outlook, which makes it stick out in our Zacks Rank model. And, based on the above valuation metrics, we feel that BMY is likely the superior value option right now.


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Bristol Myers Squibb Company (BMY) - free report >>

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