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PPL (PPL) Increases Despite Market Slip: Here's What You Need to Know

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PPL (PPL - Free Report) closed the latest trading day at $32.74, indicating a +0.52% change from the previous session's end. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.19%. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.04%.

The the stock of energy and utility holding company has risen by 2.65% in the past month, lagging the Utilities sector's gain of 4.22% and overreaching the S&P 500's gain of 1.95%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of PPL in its upcoming release. On that day, PPL is projected to report earnings of $0.42 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 2.33%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $2.16 billion, up 5.75% from the year-ago period.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $1.72 per share and a revenue of $8.26 billion, signifying shifts of +7.5% and -0.66%, respectively, from the last year.

Investors should also take note of any recent adjustments to analyst estimates for PPL. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.03% higher. At present, PPL boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that PPL has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.96 right now. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.7.

We can additionally observe that PPL currently boasts a PEG ratio of 2.78. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Utility - Electric Power industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.8 as of yesterday's close.

The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 38, this industry ranks in the top 16% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. 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.


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