Investors looking for stocks in the Internet - Services sector might want to consider either Akamai Technologies (AKAM) or Zscaler (ZS). 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.
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 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.
Right now, both Akamai Technologies and Zscaler are sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that these stocks have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.
Value investors are also interested in a number of tried-and-true valuation metrics that help show when a company is undervalued at its 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.
AKAM currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.74, while ZS has a forward P/E of 63.99. We also note that AKAM has a PEG ratio of 2.42. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. ZS currently has a PEG ratio of 4.74.
Another notable valuation metric for AKAM is its P/B ratio of 3.15. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, ZS has a P/B of 20.54.
Based on these metrics and many more, AKAM holds a Value grade of B, while ZS has a Value grade of F.
Both AKAM and ZS are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that AKAM is the superior value option right now.
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