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XRAY or COO: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

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Investors interested in Medical - Dental Supplies stocks are likely familiar with Dentsply International (XRAY - Free Report) and Cooper Cos. (COO - 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.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, both Dentsply International and Cooper Cos. are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). This means that both companies have witnessed positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle for value investors.

Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its 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.

XRAY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 21.63, while COO has a forward P/E of 26.20. We also note that XRAY has a PEG ratio of 1.89. This popular figure is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also considers a company's expected EPS growth rate. COO currently has a PEG ratio of 2.44.

Another notable valuation metric for XRAY is its P/B ratio of 2.23. 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, COO has a P/B of 4.49.

These metrics, and several others, help XRAY earn a Value grade of B, while COO has been given a Value grade of C.

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


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DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. (XRAY) - free report >>

The Cooper Companies, Inc. (COO) - free report >>

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