PPL (PPL) Exceeds Market Returns: Some Facts to Consider

In the latest close session, PPL (PPL) was up +1.78% at $34.38. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.38%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.24%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.24%. Coming into today, shares of the energy and utility holding company had gained 0.78% in the past month. In that same time, the Utilities sector gained 0.15%, while the S&P 500 gained 6.6%. The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of PPL in its forthcoming earnings report. On that day, PPL is projected to report earnings of $0.4 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 5.26%. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $1.97 billion, indicating a 4.69% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $1.82 per share and revenue of $8.85 billion, indicating changes of +7.69% and +4.61%, respectively, compared to the previous year. Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for PPL. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the business performance and profit potential. Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. 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. Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.09% higher. PPL currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). In the context of valuation, PPL is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 18.58. This denotes a premium relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 18.24. It is also worth noting that PPL currently has a PEG ratio of 2.49. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. As the market closed yesterday, the Utility - Electric Power industry was having an average PEG ratio of 2.65. The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 64, finds itself in the top 27% echelons of all 250+ industries. The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual 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. Remember to apply Zacks.com to follow these and more stock-moving metrics during the upcoming trading sessions. 5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2024. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +143.0%, +175.9%, +498.3% and +673.0%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>Want 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 PPL Corporation (PPL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks