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3 Renewable Energy Stocks Set to Beat Q3 Earnings Estimates

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Renewable energy stocks’ third-quarter results are expected to reflect moderate installation activities, as the industry wide transition to adopt clean energy remains solid. Amid rising interest rates in the United States, government policies like the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 has been providing some cushion to these stocks, which might have contributed to this industry’s bottom line.

A handful of such renewable energy stocks from the Zacks alternative energy companies, which are part of the broader Zacks Oil-Energy sector, are set to release their third-quarter results soon. Renewable energy stocks like Constellation Energy (CEG - Free Report) , Enlight Renewable Energy , TC Energy (TRP - Free Report) are likely to beat estimates this time around.

Here’s What to Expect

Per a report by the American Clean Power Association, as of Jul 31, 2023, more than $270 billion in capital investment was announced for utility-scale clean energy projects and manufacturing facilities since federal incentives were signed into law last August.

Such a solid investment strategy can be expected to have favorably contributed to the third-quarter results of the renewable energy companies in terms of modest installation activities.

As an evidence, NextEra Energy Partners (NEP - Free Report) , a prominent renewable energy company, witnessed a solid 21.5% year-over-year improvement in its third-quarter revenues.  The company witnessed a record quarter of adding approximately 3,245 megawatts of new renewables and storage to its backlog. We may expect to witness a similar trend in the results of other clean energy stocks.

Notably, factors like increasing average selling price of renewable products, more individuals switching from gasoline-powered vehicles to electric vehicles each year, as well as government subsidies such as those included in the IRA, are likely to have contributed to clean energy companies’ quarterly performance.

However, the rising price of steel, which is used to make the giant wind turbine blades, has been pushing up the cost of wind installation lately. Apart from steel, the most significant mineral requirements in the wind industry are copper, zinc, manganese, chromium, nickel, molybdenum and rare earths. The average price of these seven metals has risen 93% between January 2020 and March 2023 (as stated by an IMF report). As a result, the average per-megawatt cost of a wind turbine has increased 38% over the past two years, per a report by GlobalData.

These expenses, along with the rising cost of capital (thanks to the surging interest rates in the nation), might have adversely impacted the renewable energy companies’ overall performance.

Q3 Projections

Per the latest Earnings Preview, third-quarter earnings of the Oil-Energy sector are expected to plunge 35.5% year over year. Revenues are likely to decline 19.7% during the same time frame.

Zacks Methodology

Given the high degree of diversity in the clean energy space, finding the right stocks with the potential to beat on estimates might be quite a daunting task. However, our proprietary Zacks methodology makes this fairly simple.

We are focusing on stocks that have the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold).

Our research shows that for stocks with this combination, the chances of an earnings surprise are as high as 70%.

Earnings ESP provides the percentage difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Our Choices

Below we present four stocks that are expected to come up with an earnings beat this reporting cycle.

Constellation Energy: It is the nation’s largest producer of carbon-free energy and a leading supplier of energy products and services. In September 2023, the company signed an agreement that will help ComEd power all of its 54 offices and metered facilities with locally produced carbon-free nuclear energy, every hour of every day. This is likely to have added an impetus to CEG’s third-quarter results.

The company, with an Earnings ESP of +1.36% and a Zacks Rank #1 at present, is slated to release earnings on Nov 6. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CEG’s sales indicates a solid improvement of 12.5% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

 

Enlight Renewable Energy: It provides a renewable energy platform that develops, finances, constructs, owns and operates utility-sale renewable energy projects. In September 2023, the company announced that it has started the commercial operation of the Arad Valley 1 project in Israel, with a solar generation capacity of 17 MW and a storage capacity of 31 MWh. This might have added more customers to ENLT’s database, thereby boosting its third-quarter revenues.

The company, with an Earnings ESP of +22.22% and a Zacks Rank #2 at present, is set to release third-quarter earnings soon. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ENLT’s sales is pegged at $65.8 million, while that for earnings is pinned at 9 cents per share.

 

TC Energy: It is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America. In September 2023, the company announced the successful completion of the Bruce Power’s Major Component Replacement (MCR) Unit 6, which fully returned to service, thereby surpassing a significant milestone in Ontario’s largest clean-energy initiative. We may expect this to have favorably contributed to TRP’s third-quarter results.

The company, with an Earnings ESP of +0.37% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present, is set to release third-quarter earnings on Nov 8. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TRP’s sales is pegged at $2.76 billion, while that for earnings is pinned at 71 cents per share.

TC Energy Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

TC Energy Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

TC Energy Corporation price-eps-surprise | TC Energy Corporation Quote


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