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4 Reasons to Add PG&E Corp (PCG) Stock to Your Portfolio

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Estimates for PG&E Corporation (PCG - Free Report) have been revised upward over the past 30 days, reflecting analysts’ confidence in the stock. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 and 2019 earnings has moved 0.3% and 0.3% north to $3.80 & $4.00 per share, respectively.

Also, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in 2018 and 2019 reflects a year-over-year surge of 3.3% and 5.4%, respectively.

San Francisco, CA-based PG&E Corp generates revenues mainly through the sale and delivery of electricity and natural gas to customers. The utility also operates hydro-electric, nuclear and fossil fuel power plants.

Let’s focus on the factors that make PG&E Corp an attractive stock now.

Price Appreciation: Year to date, the Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock has gained 5.4% against the industry’s decline of 3%.



VGM Score: The stock has a favorable VGM Score of B. Here V stands for Value, G for Growth and M for Momentum with the score being a weighted combination of all three factors. Back tested results show that stocks with an impressive VGM Score of A or B coupled with a top Zacks Rank offer the best investment bets.

Earnings Results & Surprise History: The company delivered earnings of $1.16 per share in second-quarter 2018, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 95 cents by 22.1%. PG&E Corp earnings beat the consensus estimate in two of the last four quarters, the average being 5.23%.

Capex Plans: The company consistently makes considerable investments in gas-related projects and electric system safety and reliability. PG&E Corp’s capital expenditure at the end of 2017 was around $5.6 billion. The company expects to spend approximately $6.3 billion in 2018 and $6 billion in 2019.

Moreover, the company projects more than $1 billion in grid investments through 2020 to increase remote control and sensor technology of the grid. These projects will enable the company to provide reliable services to its customers.

Other Stocks to Consider

Some other top-ranked stocks from the same industry are Ameren Corporation (AEE - Free Report) , Portland General Electric Company (POR - Free Report) and The Southern Company (SO - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Ameren delivered an average four-quarter positive surprise of 9.76% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 EPS has been revised 1.3% upward in the past 60 days to $3.25 per share.

Portland General Electric pulled off an average four-quarter positive surprise of 12.77% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 EPS has moved 0.4% north in the past 60 days to $2.35 per share.

Southern Co. came up with an average four-quarter positive surprise of 8.82% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 EPS has been raised 0.7% over the past 60 days to $2.99 per share.

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