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It is not surprising that before an earnings season, every investor looks for stocks that can beat market expectations. This is because investors always try to position themselves ahead of time and look to tap high-quality stocks.
In this regard, we ran a screener that yielded American Woodmark, BJ's Restaurants, MercadoLibre, Asure Software and SkyWest as the likely winners on their earnings beat potential.
Why Is a Positive Earnings Surprise So Important?
Historically, stocks of companies with solid quarterly earnings (on a nominal basis) tank if they miss or merely meet market expectations. After all, a 20% earnings rise (though apparently looks good) doesn't tell you if earnings growth has been exhibiting a decelerating trend.
Also, seasonal fluctuations come into play sometimes. If a company's first quarter is seasonally weak and the fourth quarter strong, then it is likely to report a sequential earnings decline. In such cases, growth rates are misleading while judging the true health of a company.
Then again, after much brainstorming and analysis of companies' financials and initiatives, Wall Street analysts project earnings of companies. They, in fact, club their insights and a company's guidance when deriving an earnings estimate.
Thus, outperforming that estimate is almost equivalent to beating the company's expectation, as well as the market perception. And if the margin of earnings surprise is big, it typically drives the stock higher right after the release. Thus, more than anything else, an earnings surprise can push a stock higher.
How to Find Stocks That Can Beat?
Now, finding stocks that have the potential to beat on the bottom line may be investors' dream but not an easy job. One way to do this is to look at the earnings surprise history of the company.
An impressive track in this regard generally acts as a catalyst in sending a stock higher. It indicates the company's ability to surpass estimates. Investors generally believe that the company will apply the same secret sauce to execute yet another earning beat in its next release.
The average earnings surprise of AMWD for the past four quarters is 25.74%.
BJ's Restaurants: The Zacks Rank #1 company owns and operates a chain of high-end casual dining restaurants in the United States.
The average earnings surprise of BJRI for the past four quarters is 121.21%.
MercadoLibre: The Zacks Rank #1 company is one of the largest e-commerce platforms in South America. The company is a market leader in e-commerce in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, Mexico and Uruguay, based on unique visitors and page views.
The average earnings surprise of MELI for the past four quarters is 30.10%.
Asure Software: The Zacks Rank #2 company is a provider of web-based workforce management solutions.
The average earnings surprise of ASUR for the past four quarters is 676.39%.
SkyWest: The Zacks Rank #2 company operates as a regional airline in the United States through its subsidiary SkyWest Airlines.
The average earnings surprise of SKYW for the past four quarters is 31.52%.
You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge.
The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.
Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.
About Screen of the Week
Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine. But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use.
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar. They're virtually unknown to the general public. Yet today's 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buys" were generated by the stock-picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016. Its average gain has been a stellar +25% per year. See these high-potential stocks free >>.
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
Zacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
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Zacks.com featured highlights include American Woodmarkt, BJ's Restaurants, MercadoLibre, Asure Software and SkyWest
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – September 20, 2023 – Stocks in this week’s article are American Woodmark (AMWD - Free Report) , BJ's Restaurants (BJRI - Free Report) , MercadoLibre (MELI - Free Report) , Asure Software (ASUR - Free Report) and SkyWest (SKYW - Free Report) .
Looking for an Earnings Beat? 5 Stocks to Play
It is not surprising that before an earnings season, every investor looks for stocks that can beat market expectations. This is because investors always try to position themselves ahead of time and look to tap high-quality stocks.
In this regard, we ran a screener that yielded American Woodmark, BJ's Restaurants, MercadoLibre, Asure Software and SkyWest as the likely winners on their earnings beat potential.
Why Is a Positive Earnings Surprise So Important?
Historically, stocks of companies with solid quarterly earnings (on a nominal basis) tank if they miss or merely meet market expectations. After all, a 20% earnings rise (though apparently looks good) doesn't tell you if earnings growth has been exhibiting a decelerating trend.
Also, seasonal fluctuations come into play sometimes. If a company's first quarter is seasonally weak and the fourth quarter strong, then it is likely to report a sequential earnings decline. In such cases, growth rates are misleading while judging the true health of a company.
Then again, after much brainstorming and analysis of companies' financials and initiatives, Wall Street analysts project earnings of companies. They, in fact, club their insights and a company's guidance when deriving an earnings estimate.
Thus, outperforming that estimate is almost equivalent to beating the company's expectation, as well as the market perception. And if the margin of earnings surprise is big, it typically drives the stock higher right after the release. Thus, more than anything else, an earnings surprise can push a stock higher.
How to Find Stocks That Can Beat?
Now, finding stocks that have the potential to beat on the bottom line may be investors' dream but not an easy job. One way to do this is to look at the earnings surprise history of the company.
An impressive track in this regard generally acts as a catalyst in sending a stock higher. It indicates the company's ability to surpass estimates. Investors generally believe that the company will apply the same secret sauce to execute yet another earning beat in its next release.
Here are five of the eight stocks:
American Woodmark: The Zacks Rank #1 company is the third-largest manufacturer of kitchen and bath cabinets. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The average earnings surprise of AMWD for the past four quarters is 25.74%.
BJ's Restaurants: The Zacks Rank #1 company owns and operates a chain of high-end casual dining restaurants in the United States.
The average earnings surprise of BJRI for the past four quarters is 121.21%.
MercadoLibre: The Zacks Rank #1 company is one of the largest e-commerce platforms in South America. The company is a market leader in e-commerce in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, Mexico and Uruguay, based on unique visitors and page views.
The average earnings surprise of MELI for the past four quarters is 30.10%.
Asure Software: The Zacks Rank #2 company is a provider of web-based workforce management solutions.
The average earnings surprise of ASUR for the past four quarters is 676.39%.
SkyWest: The Zacks Rank #2 company operates as a regional airline in the United States through its subsidiary SkyWest Airlines.
The average earnings surprise of SKYW for the past four quarters is 31.52%.
You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge.
The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.
Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.
For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks.com at: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2152296/looking-for-an-earnings-beat-5-top-stocks-to-play
Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.
About Screen of the Week
Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine. But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use.
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar. They're virtually unknown to the general public. Yet today's 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buys" were generated by the stock-picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016. Its average gain has been a stellar +25% per year. See these high-potential stocks free >>.
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Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
Contact: Jim Giaquinto
Company: Zacks.com
Phone: 312-265-9268
Email: pr@zacks.com
Visit: https://www.zacks.com/
Zacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.