CDW or NOW: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?

Investors with an interest in Computers - IT Services stocks have likely encountered both CDW (CDW) and ServiceNow (NOW). 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 proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Right now, CDW is sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while ServiceNow has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that CDW has an improving earnings outlook. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

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.

CDW currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.50, while NOW has a forward P/E of 67.65. We also note that CDW has a PEG ratio of 1.41. 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. NOW currently has a PEG ratio of 2.37.

Another notable valuation metric for CDW is its P/B ratio of 21.81. 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, NOW has a P/B of 23.84.

These metrics, and several others, help CDW earn a Value grade of B, while NOW has been given a Value grade of D.

CDW sticks out from NOW in both our Zacks Rank and Style Scores models, so value investors will likely feel that CDW is the better option right now.

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