Back to top

Image: Bigstock

SMFG or BMO: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Investors interested in stocks from the Banks - Foreign sector have probably already heard of Sumitomo Mitsui (SMFG - Free Report) and Bank of Montreal (BMO - 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.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Sumitomo Mitsui has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Bank of Montreal has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This means that SMFG's earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive, so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies 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.

SMFG currently has a forward P/E ratio of 6.63, while BMO has a forward P/E of 9.63. We also note that SMFG has a PEG ratio of 1.13. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. BMO currently has a PEG ratio of 1.62.

Another notable valuation metric for SMFG is its P/B ratio of 0.46. 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, BMO has a P/B of 1.39.

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

SMFG has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than BMO, so it seems like value investors will conclude that SMFG is the superior option right now.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Bank Of Montreal (BMO) - free report >>

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (SMFG) - free report >>

Published in