AZZ (AZZ) closed at $135.98 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.18% move from the prior day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.43%. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 1.05%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.92%.
Coming into today, shares of the electrical equipment maker had gained 7.55% in the past month. In that same time, the Industrial Products sector gained 10.19%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.5%.
The upcoming earnings release of AZZ will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.19, reflecting a 21.43% increase from the same quarter last year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $383.63 million, up 9.02% from the year-ago period.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $6.04 per share and a revenue of $1.65 billion, signifying shifts of +16.15% and +4.73%, respectively, from the last year.
Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for AZZ. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.11% lower. As of now, AZZ holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In the context of valuation, AZZ is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 22.24. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 27.72, so one might conclude that AZZ is trading at a discount comparatively.
The Manufacturing - Electronics industry is part of the Industrial Products sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 77, putting it in the top 32% of all 250+ industries.
The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.
Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"
From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.
This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.
Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpAZZ Inc. (AZZ) : Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
