NMR vs. BAC: Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now?

Investors interested in stocks from the Financial - Investment Bank sector have probably already heard of Nomura Holdings (NMR) and Bank of America (BAC). But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors? We'll need to take a closer look to find out.Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.Nomura Holdings and Bank of America are both sporting a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. This system places an emphasis on companies that have seen positive earnings estimate revisions, so investors should feel comfortable knowing that these stocks have improving earnings outlooks. 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 Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics. These include the long-favored P/E ratio, P/S ratio, earnings yield, cash flow per share, and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company's fair value.NMR currently has a forward P/E ratio of 9.34, while BAC has a forward P/E of 12.66. We also note that NMR has a PEG ratio of 0.41. 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. BAC currently has a PEG ratio of 1.26.Another notable valuation metric for NMR is its P/B ratio of 0.82. 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, BAC has a P/B of 1.31.These are just a few of the metrics contributing to NMR's Value grade of A and BAC's Value grade of D.Both NMR and BAC are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks, but based on these valuation figures, we feel that NMR is the superior value option right now.Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.This top pick is among the most innovative financial firms. With a fast-growing customer base (already 50+ million) and a diverse set of cutting edge solutions, this stock is poised for big gains. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Nomura Holdings Inc ADR (NMR): Free Stock Analysis Report Bank of America Corporation (BAC): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks