VST vs. NEE: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

Investors with an interest in Utility - Electric Power stocks have likely encountered both Vistra Corp. (VST) and NextEra Energy (NEE). 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 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.

Vistra Corp. and NextEra Energy are sporting Zacks Ranks of #2 (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 VST has an improving earnings outlook. However, value investors will care about much more than just this.

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.

VST currently has a forward P/E ratio of 12.42, while NEE has a forward P/E of 26.08. We also note that VST has a PEG ratio of 0.20. 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. NEE currently has a PEG ratio of 2.96.

Another notable valuation metric for VST is its P/B ratio of 1.91. 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, NEE has a P/B of 3.27.

Based on these metrics and many more, VST holds a Value grade of A, while NEE has a Value grade of D.

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

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.