Investors looking for stocks in the Schools sector might want to consider either Strategic Education (STRA) or Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (LINC). But which of these two stocks presents investors with the better value opportunity right now? Let's take a closer look.

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 Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits.

Currently, both Strategic Education and Lincoln Educational Services Corporation are holding a Zacks Rank of # 2 (Buy). Investors should feel comfortable knowing that both of these stocks have an improving earnings outlook since the Zacks Rank favors companies that have witnessed positive analyst estimate revisions. But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in.

Value investors also tend to look at a number of traditional, tried-and-true figures to help them find stocks 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.

STRA currently has a forward P/E ratio of 20.78, while LINC has a forward P/E of 30.28. We also note that STRA has a PEG ratio of 1.39. 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. LINC currently has a PEG ratio of 2.02.

Another notable valuation metric for STRA is its P/B ratio of 1.42. 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, LINC has a P/B of 3.03.

These metrics, and several others, help STRA earn a Value grade of B, while LINC has been given a Value grade of C.

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

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Strategic Education Inc. (STRA) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (LINC) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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