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Investors looking for stocks in the Medical - Instruments sector might want to consider either Hologic (HOLX) or Edwards Lifesciences (EW). 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.

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 proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Currently, Hologic has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), while Edwards Lifesciences 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 HOLX has an improving earnings outlook. But this is just one piece of the puzzle 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.

HOLX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 18.75, while EW has a forward P/E of 33.53. We also note that HOLX has a PEG ratio of 2.55. 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. EW currently has a PEG ratio of 3.40.

Another notable valuation metric for HOLX is its P/B ratio of 3.68. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. By comparison, EW has a P/B of 7.79.

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

HOLX has seen stronger estimate revision activity and sports more attractive valuation metrics than EW, so it seems like value investors will conclude that HOLX is the superior option right now.

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Hologic, Inc. (HOLX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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