GLW Vs. VCRA: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

Investors interested in Communication - Components stocks are likely familiar with Corning (GLW) and Vocera Communications (VCRA). But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.

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.

Currently, both Corning and Vocera Communications are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates, so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

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.

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.

GLW currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.12, while VCRA has a forward P/E of 80.95. We also note that GLW has a PEG ratio of 2.06. 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. VCRA currently has a PEG ratio of 4.34.

Another notable valuation metric for GLW is its P/B ratio of 2.19. 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, VCRA has a P/B of 7.99.

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

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