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MDU Resources (MDU) to Post Q1 Earnings: What's in Store?

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MDU Resources Group, Inc. (MDU - Free Report) is set to report first-quarter 2018 results on May 2, after the market closes. In the last reported quarter, the utility company delivered a positive earnings surprise of 14.71%.

Let’s see how things are shaping up prior to the upcoming results.

Factors to Consider

MDU Resources plans to expand its customer base by 1% to 2% each year, which will have a positive impact on electric and natural gas demand.

MDU Resources Group, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

The company will gain from the $1.2 billion combined construction backlog from 2017 and also from the rising demand for construction services.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is currently pegged at 21 cents, an increase of 16.7% year over year.

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model shows that MDU Resources is unlikely to beat estimates because it does not have the right combination of the two key ingredients. A stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) to be able to beat estimates and MDU Resources lacks the right mix.

You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks ESP:  The company has Earnings ESP of -2.44%.You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank:  MDU Resources carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Note that we caution against Sell-rated stocks (#4 or 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.

Stocks to Consider

MDU Resources does not have the right mix but investors can consider these stocks from the Zacks Utility Sector that have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.

Spire Inc. (SR - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +2.99%. It carries Zacks Rank #2 and is expected to report first-quarter 2018 earnings on May 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

South Jersey Industries, Inc. has an Earnings ESP of +3.47%. It sports a Zacks Rank #1 and is expected to report first-quarter 2018 earnings on May 8.

WEC Energy Group, Inc (WEC - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +0.58%. It carries a Zacks Rank #2 and is expected to report first-quarter 2018 earnings on May 1.

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