Investors looking for stocks in the REIT and Equity Trust - Residential sector might want to consider either Preferred Apartment Communities (APTS) or Essex Property Trust (ESS). 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 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.
Currently, Preferred Apartment Communities has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Essex Property Trust has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that APTS is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.
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.
APTS currently has a forward P/E ratio of 23.73, while ESS has a forward P/E of 25.58. We also note that APTS has a PEG ratio of 3.39. 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. ESS currently has a PEG ratio of 4.19.
Another notable valuation metric for APTS is its P/B ratio of 1.29. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, ESS has a P/B of 3.75.
Based on these metrics and many more, APTS holds a Value grade of B, while ESS has a Value grade of D.
APTS stands above ESS thanks to its solid earnings outlook, and based on these valuation figures, we also feel that APTS is the superior value option right now.
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Preferred Apartment Communities, Inc. (APTS): Free Stock Analysis Report
Essex Property Trust, Inc. (ESS): Free Stock Analysis Report
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
