Financial Survey: IDACORP (IDA) vs. Its Peers

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) is one of 105 public companies in the “Electric Utilities” industry, but how does it compare to its peers? We will compare IDACORP to similar companies based on the strength of its analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, dividends, earnings and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares IDACORP and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
IDACORP	19.84%	9.92%	3.48%
IDACORP Competitors	14.14%	9.68%	3.20%

Volatility & Risk

IDACORP has a beta of 0.47, meaning that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, IDACORP’s peers have a beta of -1.86, meaning that their average stock price is 286% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.1% of IDACORP shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.0% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of IDACORP shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.2% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares IDACORP and its peers top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
IDACORP	$1.81 billion	$323.47 million	22.51
IDACORP Competitors	$14.11 billion	$1.54 billion	20.07

IDACORP’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than IDACORP. IDACORP is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for IDACORP and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
IDACORP	0	2	6	0	2.75
IDACORP Competitors	1434	6560	5533	145	2.32

IDACORP presently has a consensus target price of $152.29, suggesting a potential upside of 3.92%. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies have a potential upside of 5.27%. Given IDACORP’s peers higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe IDACORP has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

Dividends

IDACORP pays an annual dividend of $3.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. IDACORP pays out 54.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies pay a dividend yield of 3.2% and pay out 64.3% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. IDACORP has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years.

Summary

IDACORP beats its peers on 9 of the 15 factors compared.

IDACORP Company Profile

IDACORP, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada. As of December 31, 2023, it had approximately 4,762 pole-miles of high-voltage transmission lines; 23 step-up transmission substations located at power plants; 21 transmission substations; 11 switching stations; 30 mixed-use transmission and distribution substations; 186 energized distribution substations; and 29,714 pole-miles of distribution lines, and 131 MW of battery storage, as well as provides electric utility services to approximately 633,000 retail customers in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. The company serves commercial and industrial customers, which involved in food processing, electronics and general manufacturing, agriculture, health care, government, and education. It also invests in housing and other real estate tax credit investments. IDACORP, Inc. was founded in 1915 and is headquartered in Boise, Idaho.