Investors interested in Medical - Dental Supplies stocks are likely familiar with Becton Dickinson (BDX) and Merit Medical (MMSI). 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 puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits.

Both Becton Dickinson and Merit Medical have 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 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.

BDX currently has a forward P/E ratio of 16.38, while MMSI has a forward P/E of 27.40. We also note that BDX has a PEG ratio of 1.71. 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. MMSI currently has a PEG ratio of 2.28.

Another notable valuation metric for BDX is its P/B ratio of 2.64. 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, MMSI has a P/B of 4.49.

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

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

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Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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