In the latest market close, AT&T (T) reached $26.16, with a -0.24% movement compared to the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.12%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 1.14%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 1.46%.
Coming into today, shares of the telecommunications company had gained 8.12% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector lost 7.5%, while the S&P 500 lost 4.13%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of AT&T in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $0.52, signifying a 5.45% drop compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $30.55 billion, up 1.75% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $2.14 per share and revenue of $124.19 billion. These totals would mark changes of -5.31% and +1.52%, respectively, from last year.
Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for AT&T. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.
Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. 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.
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. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.44% lower. AT&T is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Investors should also note AT&T's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 12.28. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.32.
We can additionally observe that T currently boasts a PEG ratio of 3.01. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The average PEG ratio for the Wireless National industry stood at 3.01 at the close of the market yesterday.
The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 27, placing it within the top 11% of over 250 industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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