In the latest close session, PPL (PPL) was down 2.08% at $33.50. On the other hand, the Dow registered a loss of 0.25%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.31%.
The energy and utility holding company's stock has dropped by 1.84% in the past month, falling short of the Utilities sector's gain of 0.83% and the S&P 500's gain of 5.05%.
The upcoming earnings release of PPL will be of great interest to investors. In that report, analysts expect PPL to post earnings of $0.39 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 2.63%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $1.98 billion, up 5.52% from the year-ago period.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $1.82 per share and a revenue of $8.91 billion, demonstrating changes of +7.69% and +5.27%, respectively, from the preceding year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for PPL. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To take advantage of this, we've established the Zacks Rank, an exclusive model that considers these estimated changes and delivers an operational rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.09% upward. Right now, PPL possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, PPL is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 18.8. This denotes a premium relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 17.9.
It's also important to note that PPL currently trades at a PEG ratio of 2.52. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. As the market closed yesterday, the Utility - Electric Power industry was having an average PEG ratio of 2.63.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 93, finds itself in the top 38% echelons of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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PPL Corporation (PPL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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