Monday, December 6, 2021

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 Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA) and Medtronic plc (MDT). 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 Microsoft have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year (+52% vs. +25%). The Zacks analyst believes that Microsoft has been benefiting significantly from strength in its Azure cloud platform amid accelerated global digital transformation.

Microsoft Teams’ user growth has also been gaining on the back of the continued remote working trend as well as the mainstream adoption of hybrid/flexible work model. Solid uptake of new Xbox consoles is aiding the gaming segment performance. MSFT is also witnessing growth in the user base of its different applications, including Microsoft 365 suite, Dynamics and Power Platform.

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

NVIDIA shares have gained +135.3% in the year to date period against the Zacks General Semiconductor industry’s gain of +68.7%. The Zacks analyst believes that NVIDIA has been benefiting from the coronavirus-induced work and learn-from-home wave, as well as the strong growth in GeForce desktop and notebook Graphic Processing Units.

A surge in Hyperscale demand remains a tailwind for the company’s Data Center business. Expansion of NVIDIA GeForce NOW is expected to drive user base. Solid uptake of artificial intelligence-based smart cockpit infotainment solutions is another positive. Collaboration with Mercedes-Benz is also expected to further strengthen NVIDIA’s presence in the autonomous vehicles space.

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

Shares of Medtronic have lost -13% in the last six months against the Zacks Medical Products industry’s loss of -7.3%; however, things seem to be improving for the company. The Zacks analyst believes that all of MDT’s major business groups have been reporting consistent gains, which highlights sustainability across groups and regions.

Medtronic’s second-quarter fiscal 2022 earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate and it registered organic growth in the Cardiovascular, Neuroscience and Diabetes segments. The quarter’s gross and operating margins showed improvements on a year-over-year basis. MDT, however, continues to reel under pressure from health system labor shortages as well as the ongoing pandemic.

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

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Anthem, Inc. (ANTM), The Progressive Corp. (PGR) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX).

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>>>