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VIRT vs. BX: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

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Investors interested in Financial - Miscellaneous Services stocks are likely familiar with Virtu Financial (VIRT - Free Report) and Blackstone Inc. (BX - Free Report) . 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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Right now, Virtu Financial is sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), while Blackstone Inc. has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that VIRT likely has seen a stronger improvement to its earnings outlook than BX has recently. But this is only part of the picture 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.

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.

VIRT currently has a forward P/E ratio of 11.70, while BX has a forward P/E of 45.29. We also note that VIRT has a PEG ratio of 0.49. 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. BX currently has a PEG ratio of 1.69.

Another notable valuation metric for VIRT is its P/B ratio of 4. 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, BX has a P/B of 7.74.

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

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


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