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In the latest market close, American Water Works (AWK) reached $117.82, with a -0.41% movement compared to the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.74% gain on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.01%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.68%.

Heading into today, shares of the water utility had lost 1.85% over the past month, outpacing the Utilities sector's loss of 6.89% and lagging the S&P 500's gain of 0.8% in that time.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of American Water Works in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to be unveiled on May 1, 2024. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $1, signifying a 9.89% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $954.21 million, showing a 1.73% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $5.22 per share and a revenue of $4.27 billion, signifying shifts of +6.53% and +0.82%, respectively, from the last year.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for American Water Works. 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 company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

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. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.24% higher within the past month. American Water Works is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that American Water Works has a Forward P/E ratio of 22.67 right now. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 20.07, so one might conclude that American Water Works is trading at a premium comparatively.

Investors should also note that AWK has a PEG ratio of 2.83 right now. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The average PEG ratio for the Utility - Water Supply industry stood at 2.59 at the close of the market yesterday.

The Utility - Water Supply industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 23, which puts it in the top 10% 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.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.