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AXS or BRK.B: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors looking for stocks in the Insurance - Property and Casualty sector might want to consider either Axis Capital (AXS - Free Report) or Berkshire Hathaway B (BRK.B - 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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Axis Capital and Berkshire Hathaway B are both sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. 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.

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.

AXS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 7.43, while BRK.B has a forward P/E of 22.97. We also note that AXS has a PEG ratio of 0.27. 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. BRK.B currently has a PEG ratio of 3.28.

Another notable valuation metric for AXS is its P/B ratio of 1.31. 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, BRK.B has a P/B of 1.61.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to AXS's Value grade of A and BRK.B's Value grade of C.

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


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Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B) - free report >>

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