LL vs. FAST: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

Investors looking for stocks in the Building Products - Retail sector might want to consider either Lumber Liquidators Holdings (LL) or Fastenal (FAST). 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.

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.

Both Lumber Liquidators Holdings and Fastenal have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. But this is just one piece of the puzzle 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.

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.

LL currently has a forward P/E ratio of 28.25, while FAST has a forward P/E of 31.61. We also note that LL has a PEG ratio of 1.03. This figure is similar to the commonly-used P/E ratio, with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company's expected earnings growth rate. FAST currently has a PEG ratio of 3.51.

Another notable valuation metric for LL is its P/B ratio of 1.71. 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, FAST has a P/B of 8.88.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to LL's Value grade of A and FAST's Value grade of C.

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

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Lumber Liquidators Holdings, Inc (LL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Fastenal Company (FAST) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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