Friday, October 6, 2017

The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including HSBC (HSBC), United Parcel Service (UPS) and General Motors (GM). These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>

Shares of Buy-rated HSBC on NYSE have outperformed the Zacks Foreign Banks industry in the last six months, gaining +22.4% vs. +12.8%. Continued success of its cost saving efforts should improve the bank’s operating efficiency and support profitability.

While dismal European economic growth and weak loan demand are expected to lead to muted revenue growth in the near-term, the company will likely benefit from its extensive global network and a solid asset growth.

The announcement of $2 billion share repurchase plan reflects its strong capital position and boosts investors’ confidence in the stock. Further, the bank aims to identify and remove “low-return” RWAs going forward as well.

(You can read the full research report on HSBC here >>>).

Buy-rated United Parcel Service's shares have outperformed the Zacks Air Freight And Cargo industry as well as rival FedEx over the last three months. While the stock has gained +7.1%, the industry has advanced +5.3%. Shares of FedEx have gained only +1.5% in the period.

UPS will be leaving no stone unturned to perform well this upcoming holiday season. It expects to benefit from the growth in ecommerce. Meanwhile, growth in export shipments continues to boost UPS.

Additionally, the company’s efforts to reward its shareholders seem to be encouraging. Earlier this year, it hiked quarterly dividend by 6.4%.  Furthermore, UPS' expansion efforts raise investors’ optimism. However, adverse foreign currency movements and high costs might hurt results in the third quarter of 2017. Results are scheduled to be revealed on Oct 26.

(You can read the full research report on United Parcel Service here >>>).

Shares of General Motors have outperformed the Zacks Domestic Automotive industry over the last six months, increasing +30.1% vs. +16.5%. The company is set to gain from its strong crossover and truck segment. It aims to focus more on the development of electric vehicles and plans to roll out 20 electric or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles by 2023. It is also emphasizing to strengthen its brands, increasing retail sales and maintaining operating discipline.

General Motor believes that by 2030 half of its global sales growth will be from emerging markets, encouraging it to make large investments and launch new products in those regions. However, frequent vehicle recalls, high inventory level of passenger cars and currency fluctuations are few concerns the company has been facing. Also, Zacks Consensus Estimate for General Motors’ quarterly earnings has been going down of late.

(You can read the full research report on General Motors here >>>).

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Netflix (NFLX), Sanofi (SNY) and Monsanto (MON).

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If the stocks above spark your interest, wait until you look into companies primed to make substantial gains from Washington's changing course.

Today Zacks reveals 5 tickers that could benefit from new trends like streamlined drug approvals, tariffs, lower taxes, higher interest rates, and spending surges in defense and infrastructure.

See these buy recommendations now >>

Mark Vickery

Senior Editor

Note: Sheraz Mian heads the Zacks Equity Research department and is a well-regarded expert of aggregate earnings. He is frequently quoted in the print and electronic media and publishes the weekly Earnings Trends and Earnings Preview reports. If you want an email notification each time Sheraz publishes a new article, please click here>>>