Sifting through countless of stocks in the Electric Utilities industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in IDACORP, Inc. or Pampa Energía S.A. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A.

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; and three natural gas-fired plants situated in southern Idaho, as well as interests in a coal-fired and natural gas-fired steam generating plant located in Wyoming; and interests in a coal-fired steam generating plant situated in Nevada. As of December 31, 2025, it had approximately 4,730 pole miles of high-voltage transmission lines; 23 step-up transmission substations located at power plants; 21 transmission substations; 12 switching stations; 31 mixed-use transmission and distribution substations; 188 energized distribution substations; approximately 30,020 linear miles of distribution lines; and a capacity of 1,228 MWh of battery storage. The company provides electric utility services to approximately 664,000 retail customers in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. It serves commercial and industrial customers, which involved in food processing, electronics and general manufacturing, agriculture, health care, government, education, and information technology. The company also invests in housing and other real estate tax credit investments. IDACORP, Inc. was founded in 1915 and is headquartered in Boise, Idaho.

Pampa Energía S.A. operates as an integrated power company in Argentina. The company operates through Oil and Gas; Generation; Petrochemicals; and Holding, Transportation and Others segments. It generates electricity through thermal plants, hydroelectric plants, and wind farms with a 5,472 megawatt (MW) installed capacity. The company also explores for and produces oil and gas in the provinces of Neuquén and Río Negro. In addition, it produces petrochemicals, such as styrene, synthetic rubber, and polystyrene. Further, the company operates and maintains a 22,445 km high-voltage electricity transmission network in Argentina. Additionally, it holds a concession for the transportation of natural gas with 9,248 km of gas pipelines in the center, west, and south of Argentina; and processes and sells natural gas liquids in Bahía Blanca in the Province of Buenos Aires, as well as offers related advisory services. Pampa Energía S.A. was formerly known as Pampa Holding S.A. and changed its name to Pampa Energía S.A. in September 2008. The company was incorporated in 1945 and is based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Latest Electric Utilities and IDACORP, Inc., Pampa Energía S.A. Stock News

As of October 8, 2026, IDACORP, Inc. had a $7.8 billion market capitalization, compared to the Electric Utilities median of $17.0 million. IDACORP, Inc.’s stock is up 7% in 2026, up 2% in the previous five trading days and up 0.28% in the past year.

Currently, IDACORP, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 22.2. IDACORP, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.8 billion with a 18.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 4.2%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $6.380 per share for the current fiscal year. IDACORP, Inc. currently has a 2.6% dividend yield.

As of October 8, 2026, Pampa Energía S.A. had a $4.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 67th percentile of all stocks. Pampa Energía S.A.’s stock is down 9.2% in 2026, up 5.2% in the previous five trading days and up 34.49% in the past year.

Currently, Pampa Energía S.A.’s price-earnings ratio is 191.6. Pampa Energía S.A.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.4 billion with a 23.6% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 53.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $10.618 per share for the current fiscal year. Pampa Energía S.A. does not currently pay a dividend.

How We Compare IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
IDACORP, Inc.	IDA	A
Pampa Energía S.A.	PAM	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

IDACORP, Inc. has a Growth Score of 95, which is Very Strong. Pampa Energía S.A. has a Growth Score of 82, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Growth Grade breakdown above, both IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. have a grade of A. For investors who focus solely on a company’s upward growth, further research should be conducted into both companies’ other financial metrics before deciding whether to invest.

IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
IDACORP, Inc.	IDA	D
Pampa Energía S.A.	PAM	B

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

IDACORP, Inc. has a Quality Score of 38, which is Weak. Pampa Energía S.A. has a Quality Score of 65, which is Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: Pampa Energía S.A.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Pampa Energía S.A. has a better overall quality grade than IDACORP, Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Pampa Energía S.A. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
IDACORP, Inc.	IDA	C
Pampa Energía S.A.	PAM	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

IDACORP, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 54, which is Neutral. Pampa Energía S.A. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 51, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither IDACORP, Inc. or Pampa Energía S.A. has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if IDACORP, Inc. or Pampa Energía S.A. is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Growth and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, IDACORP, Inc. or Pampa Energía S.A. Stock?

Overall, IDACORP, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 95, Estimate Revisions Score of 54 and Quality Score of 38.

Pampa Energía S.A. stock has a Growth Score of 82, Estimate Revisions Score of 51 and Quality Score of 65.

Comparing IDACORP, Inc. and Pampa Energía S.A.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.