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Here's Why You Should Add UNITIL (UTL) to Your Portfolio
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Earnings estimates for UNITIL Corporation (UTL - Free Report) have been revised upward in the past 60 days, reflecting analyst’s optimism in the stock. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 and 2019 earnings moved up 2.8% and 0.9% to $2.22 and $2.26, respectively. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Let’s focus on the factors that make UNITIL Corporation a profitable pick.
Earnings & Surprise History
In second-quarter 2018, UNITIL delivered earnings of 24 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The company delivered average positive earnings surprise of 15.85% in the trailing four quarters.
Price Performance
The company’s shares have inched up 2.1% in the past 12 months, against the industry’s decline of 4.2%.
Dividend History
UNITIL has been paying dividend for the past three decades and raised dividend annually since the past four years. Currently, UNITIL’s dividend yield of 2.89% is better than the S&P 500 composite’s 1.79%.
Growth Projections
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings is pegged at $2.22, reflecting year-over-year improvement of 7.77%.
For 2019, the consensus estimate for earnings is pegged at $2.26, showing a rise of 2.03% year over year.
Other Stocks to Consider
Investors can consider a few other top-ranked stocks from the same space such as Ameren Corporation (AEE - Free Report) , Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (AQN - Free Report) and NRG Energy, Inc (NRG - Free Report) . Ameren and Algonquin Power & Utilities hold a Zacks Rank of 2. NRG Energy sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can seethe complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Ameren came up with an average four-quarter earnings surprise of 7.69%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 EPS moved up 5.6% in the past 90 days to $3.21.
Algonquin Power & Utilities delivered an average four-quarter earnings beat of 36.39%. The consensus mark for 2018 bottom line has been revised up by 11.5% in the past 90 days to 68 cents.
NRG Energy pulled off an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 213.28%. The consensus estimate for 2019 EPS has been raised 25.8% in the past 90 days to $4.14.
More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!
It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.
Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.
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Here's Why You Should Add UNITIL (UTL) to Your Portfolio
Earnings estimates for UNITIL Corporation (UTL - Free Report) have been revised upward in the past 60 days, reflecting analyst’s optimism in the stock. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 and 2019 earnings moved up 2.8% and 0.9% to $2.22 and $2.26, respectively. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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Let’s focus on the factors that make UNITIL Corporation a profitable pick.
Earnings & Surprise History
In second-quarter 2018, UNITIL delivered earnings of 24 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The company delivered average positive earnings surprise of 15.85% in the trailing four quarters.
Price Performance
The company’s shares have inched up 2.1% in the past 12 months, against the industry’s decline of 4.2%.
Dividend History
UNITIL has been paying dividend for the past three decades and raised dividend annually since the past four years. Currently, UNITIL’s dividend yield of 2.89% is better than the S&P 500 composite’s 1.79%.
Growth Projections
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings is pegged at $2.22, reflecting year-over-year improvement of 7.77%.
For 2019, the consensus estimate for earnings is pegged at $2.26, showing a rise of 2.03% year over year.
Other Stocks to Consider
Investors can consider a few other top-ranked stocks from the same space such as Ameren Corporation (AEE - Free Report) , Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (AQN - Free Report) and NRG Energy, Inc (NRG - Free Report) . Ameren and Algonquin Power & Utilities hold a Zacks Rank of 2. NRG Energy sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Ameren came up with an average four-quarter earnings surprise of 7.69%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 EPS moved up 5.6% in the past 90 days to $3.21.
Algonquin Power & Utilities delivered an average four-quarter earnings beat of 36.39%. The consensus mark for 2018 bottom line has been revised up by 11.5% in the past 90 days to 68 cents.
NRG Energy pulled off an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 213.28%. The consensus estimate for 2019 EPS has been raised 25.8% in the past 90 days to $4.14.
More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!
It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.
Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.
Click here for the 6 trades >>