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Why AZZ (AZZ) Dipped More Than Broader Market Today

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In the latest trading session, AZZ (AZZ - Free Report) closed at $91.15, marking a -1.29% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.38%. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 0.31%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.59%.

Heading into today, shares of the electrical equipment maker had gained 17.03% over the past month, outpacing the Industrial Products sector's gain of 9.9% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.76% in that time.

The upcoming earnings release of AZZ will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.26, reflecting a 5.88% increase from the same quarter last year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $397.86 million, showing a 4.26% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $5.11 per share and a revenue of $1.6 billion, demonstrating changes of +12.8% and +4.28%, respectively, from the preceding year.

Furthermore, it would be beneficial for investors to monitor any recent shifts in analyst projections for AZZ. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the company's business performance and profit potential.

Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. 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 past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained steady. Right now, AZZ possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

From a valuation perspective, AZZ is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 18.09. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 22.62, so one might conclude that AZZ is trading at a discount comparatively.

Also, we should mention that AZZ has a PEG ratio of 1.29. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. The Manufacturing - Electronics industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.24 as of yesterday's close.

The Manufacturing - Electronics industry is part of the Industrial Products sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 149, putting it in the bottom 41% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.


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