ALL Vs. RNR: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

Investors with an interest in Insurance - Property and Casualty stocks have likely encountered both Allstate (ALL) and RenaissanceRe (RNR). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

The best way to find great value stocks is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Allstate and RenaissanceRe are sporting Zacks Ranks of #1 (Strong Buy) and #3 (Hold), respectively, right now. The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that ALL has an improving earnings outlook. 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.

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.

ALL currently has a forward P/E ratio of 10.70, while RNR has a forward P/E of 16.42. We also note that ALL has a PEG ratio of 1.28. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. RNR currently has a PEG ratio of 1.73.

Another notable valuation metric for ALL is its P/B ratio of 1.49. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. For comparison, RNR has a P/B of 1.56.

Based on these metrics and many more, ALL holds a Value grade of A, while RNR has a Value grade of C.

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