VRNT Or CTXS: Which Is The Better Value Stock Right Now?

Investors interested in Computer - Software stocks are likely familiar with Verint Systems (VRNT) and Citrix Systems (NASDAQ:CTXS). 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.

There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks, but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Verint Systems has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Citrix Systems has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that VRNT is likely seeing its earnings outlook improve to a greater extent. But this is only part of the picture for value investors.

Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its 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.

VRNT currently has a forward P/E ratio of 14.64, while CTXS has a forward P/E of 22.48. We also note that VRNT has a PEG ratio of 1.05. 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. CTXS currently has a PEG ratio of 2.86.

Another notable valuation metric for VRNT is its P/B ratio of 2.93. 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, CTXS has a P/B of 22.41.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to VRNT's Value grade of B and CTXS's Value grade of C.

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