SNH Vs. LXP: Which Stock Is The Better Value Option?

Investors interested in REIT and Equity Trust - Other stocks are likely familiar with Senior Housing Properties (SNH) and Lexington Realty (LXP). 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 emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight stocks with specific traits.

Both Senior Housing Properties and Lexington Realty have a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy) right now. 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 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.

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.

SNH currently has a forward P/E ratio of 8.06, while LXP has a forward P/E of 12.06. We also note that SNH has a PEG ratio of 2.69. 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. LXP currently has a PEG ratio of 4.95.

Another notable valuation metric for SNH is its P/B ratio of 0.96. 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, LXP has a P/B of 1.74.

These are just a few of the metrics contributing to SNH's Value grade of B and LXP's Value grade of C.

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