FirstEnergy (FE) to Report Q4 Earnings: Is a Beat in Store?

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FirstEnergy Corp. FE is scheduled to release fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 19, after market close. In the last four quarters, this utility player delivered average positive earnings surprise of 3.67%.

What Does the Zacks Model Say?

Our proven model shows that FirstEnergy is likely to beat estimates as it has the right combination of two key ingredients. A stock needs to have a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Earnings ESP: The company has Earnings ESP of +1.04%.
 
Zacks Rank: FirstEnergy currently carries a Zacks Rank #3. The combination of FirstEnergy’s Zacks Rank #3 and +1.04% ESP makes us confident of an earnings beat in the upcoming quarterly results.

We caution against Sell-rated stocks (#4 or 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is witnessing negative estimate revisions.

FirstEnergy Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

 

FirstEnergy Corporation Price and EPS Surprise | FirstEnergy Corporation Quote

 

Factors at Play

FirstEnergy, a fully-regulated company, is expected to benefit from the FE Tomorrow effort, which will lower costs and make a positive impact on the company's earnings.

The company has made investments to strengthen transmission and distribution lines to serve customers efficiently. The demand from residential and industrial customers continues to improve and the same is expected to aid results in the final quarter.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 48 cents, which is unchanged in the past 30 days.

Other Stocks to Consider

In addition to FirstEnergy, investors can also consider the following players from the same industry, which also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in the to-be-reported quarter.

Portland General Electric Company POR has an Earnings ESP of +4.19% and a Zacks Rank #1. The company is expected to release fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 15.

NiSource, Inc NI has an Earnings ESP of +1.35% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company is expected to release fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 20.

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation PNW has an Earnings ESP of +4.17% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is expected to release fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 22.

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Portland General Electric Company (POR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
FirstEnergy Corporation (FE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
NiSource, Inc (NI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (PNW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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