In the latest close session, NRG Energy (NRG) was up +2.53% at $123.70. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.75%. At the same time, the Dow added 1.86%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 2.54%.
Shares of the power company witnessed a loss of 7.96% over the previous month, trailing the performance of the Utilities sector with its loss of 1.9%, and the S&P 500's loss of 1.63%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of NRG Energy in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.12, reflecting a 26.19% increase from the same quarter last year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $6.27 billion, down 6.93% from the year-ago period.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $8.98 per share and a revenue of $35.58 billion, demonstrating changes of +11.28% and +15.85%, respectively, from the preceding year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for NRG Energy should also be noted by investors. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 1.84% higher. At present, NRG Energy boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, NRG Energy is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 13.44. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 17.84, which means NRG Energy is trading at a discount to the group.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 148, which puts it in the bottom 40% 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.
Be sure to use Zacks.com to monitor all these stock-influencing metrics, and more, throughout the forthcoming trading sessions.
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NRG Energy, Inc. (NRG): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).