Back to top

Image: Bigstock

PPL (PPL) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

PPL (PPL - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $27.20, moving -0.15% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's 1.76% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 1.17%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 3.03%.

Coming into today, shares of the energy and utility holding company had lost 5.02% in the past month. In that same time, the Utilities sector lost 1.62%, while the S&P 500 lost 5.94%.

Investors will be hoping for strength from PPL as it approaches its next earnings release. The company is expected to report EPS of $0.41, unchanged from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $1.86 billion, up 4.64% from the prior-year quarter.

PPL's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $1.60 per share and revenue of $7.39 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +13.48% and -6.49%, respectively.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for PPL. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.31% lower. PPL is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, PPL is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 17.08. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.15.

The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 145, which puts it in the bottom 43% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow PPL in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


PPL Corporation (PPL) - free report >>

Published in