American Electric Power (AEP) closed at $101.78 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.37% move from the prior day. This move was narrower than the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.57%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.57%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 1.89%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the utility had gained 8.82% over the past month. This has outpaced the Utilities sector's gain of 5.19% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.35% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from AEP as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be February 20, 2020. In that report, analysts expect AEP to post earnings of $0.59 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 18.06%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $4.06 billion, up 6.87% from the prior-year quarter.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for AEP should also be noted by investors. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.19% lower. AEP is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Investors should also note AEP's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 23.25. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 20.31, so we one might conclude that AEP is trading at a premium comparatively.
It is also worth noting that AEP currently has a PEG ratio of 4.12. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. Utility - Electric Power stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 4.11 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 164, which puts it in the bottom 36% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow AEP in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NYSE:AEP
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