Investors interested in Insurance - Multi line stocks are likely familiar with Axa Sa (AXAHY) and Goosehead Insurance (GSHD). But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.

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 puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Axa Sa has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Goosehead Insurance has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that AXAHY has an improving earnings outlook. 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.

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.

AXAHY currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.57, while GSHD has a forward P/E of 60.84. We also note that AXAHY has a PEG ratio of 1.61. 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. GSHD currently has a PEG ratio of 4.34.

Another notable valuation metric for AXAHY is its P/B ratio of 1.84. 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, GSHD has a P/B of 108.72.

These metrics, and several others, help AXAHY earn a Value grade of B, while GSHD has been given a Value grade of F.

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

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Axa Sa (AXAHY):Free Stock Analysis Report

Goosehead Insurance (GSHD):Free Stock Analysis Report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research

View Comments