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Griffon and Clearway Energy have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day
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For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – December 8, 2023 – Zacks Equity Research shares Griffon (GFF - Free Report) as the Bull of the Day and Clearway Energy (CWEN - Free Report) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) , American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) and United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) .
Griffon’s stock has offered investors the steady growth and value they look for in the portfolio and lands the Bull of the Day after being added to the Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) list on Thursday.
The multinational conglomerate and holding company has an expanding presence in the home and building products market along with the consumer and professional products markets.
After hitting 52-week highs of $50 a share this week there could still be plenty of upside for Griffon’s stock with the Average Zacks Price Target of $64.25 a share being 29% above current levels.
Performance Overview
Operating through several subsidiaries including The Ames Companies, Griffon’s stock has popped +39% in 2023 and has now soared over +150% in the last three years to largely outperform the broader indexes.
As one of its most lucrative subsidiaries, The Ames Companies has operations in Massachusetts that date back to 1774 etching its name in American history while becoming a leading North American manufacturer and a global provider of branded tools and products for home storage, organization, and landscaping.
Strengthening Outlook
Extending its impeccable price performance over the last few years was that Griffon was able to beat its fiscal fourth quarter earnings expectations by 22% last month.
Although Griffon’s current fiscal 2024 earnings are expected to dip -7% following a tougher-to-compete-against year, FY25 EPS is projected to rebound and soar 32% to $5.56 per share. More importantly, earnings estimate revisions for both FY24 and FY25 are nicely up over the last 60 days.
This is very compelling considering Griffon’s stock trades at a 12X forward earnings multiple which is a lofty discount to the S&P 500’s 21.2X and its Zacks Diversified Operations Markets' 22.9X with some of the notable names in the space including GM, 3M and Honeywell.
Bottom Line
In addition to sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Griffon’s stock has an “A” Zacks Style Scores grade for both Value and Growth. Checking many fundamental trading boxes there appears to be more room to run for GFF shares with Griffon offering a respectable 1.21% annual dividend yield as well.
The long-term prospects of alternative energy player Clearway Energy may still be perplexing but unfortunately, there may be more short-term risk ahead landing its stock a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) and the Bear of the Day.
After widely missing earnings expectations for two consecutive quarters investors may want to curb their enthusiasm for Clearway’s luring 6.34% annual dividend yield amid weak renewable resource conditions and lower natural gas prices.
Weak Q3 Results: Notably, the Zacks Alternative Energy-Other Industry is in the bottom 39% of over 250 Zacks industries and Clearway’s Q3 results in November alluded to a tougher operating environment.
While Q3 sales of $371 million topped estimates by 8% earnings of $0.03 a share fell a very concerning -94% below expectations of $0.55 a share. This comes after Q2 earnings of $0.33 a share missed the Zacks Consensus of $0.55 a share by -40% in August.
Weaker Outlook: Largely attributing to Clearway’s strong sell rating, annual earnings estimates for fiscal 2023 are down -10% over the last 60 days while FY24 EPS estimates have fallen -11%.
On top of this, Clearway’s stock is already down -21% this year to vastly underperform the broader indexes and trail its Zacks Subindustry’s -14%.
Takeaway
While it’s far too soon to call Clearway Energy’s stock a value trap, investors may want to think twice before investing in the company at the moment considering its lucrative dividend yield but poor performance of late.
Additional content:
Here's Why Airline Stocks Are Soaring
Wednesday, Dec 6, saw U.S. airline stocks perform exceedingly well on the bourses. Shares of industrial heavyweights like Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines gained 3.54%, 2.67% and 3.38%, respectively, on Dec 6 over Dec 5’s closing. Consequently, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index appreciated 2.19% at the close of trading on Dec 6.
The catalyst behind the impressive performance on the bourses was the bullish commentary of Delta’s management at the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference. After a record-breaking performance during the Thanksgiving holiday period, management expects another rosy performance in terms of traffic during Christmas, thereby ending the year on a strong note.
We remind investors that more than 5.3 million customers availed of DAL flights between Nov 17 and Nov 26. DAL operated more than 43,000 flights systemwide during this period to meet the buoyant air travel demand witnessed during the Thanksgiving holiday period.
At the investor event, management also sounded optimistic about international air travel in 2024 and stated that its performance with respect to Trans-Atlantic travel had been particularly strong in the current year, leading to a significant increase in capacity to meet the buoyant demand scenario. Management expects the strong Trans-Atlantic performance to continue next year, as advanced bookings remain strong and are anticipated to pick up as we approach March.
Highlighting that air travel demand has held up well over the past few weeks, DAL maintained the fourth-quarter and 2023 outlook that it provided in October with its third-quarter results. Fourth-quarter earnings are expected to be $1.05-$1.30 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $1.15 per share.
The adjusted operating margin in the December quarter is expected to be 9-11%. Management projects fourth-quarter total revenues (adjusted) to increase 9-12% on a year-over-year basis. DAL continues to anticipate adjusted earnings of $6.00-$6.25 per share for 2023. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $6.10 per share. For 2023, the adjusted operating margin is expected to be 11.5%. Management projects full-year total revenues (adjusted) to increase 20% on a year-over-year basis.
Airlines Regain Mojo Ahead of Year-End
The record traffic during the Thanksgiving period has provided the much-needed boost to airline stocks after a tough few months due to headwinds like high labor and fuel costs, and a slowdown in domestic air travel demand. We note that airline stocks have been performing well of late and the uptick on Dec 6 was part of that uptrend.
Over the past month, stocks in the Zacks Airline industry have gained 11.5%, handily outperforming the S&P 500’s 3.9% appreciation.
Similar to DAL, American Airlines and United Airlines have attracted huge traffic in the Thanksgiving travel period. AAL flights attracted 6.5 million customers over the Thanksgiving holiday, thereby establishing a record for the airline, with Nov 26 being its busiest day. UAL flights, too, were packed, with a record 3.2 million passengers flying between Nov 17 and Nov 23.
The upbeat air-traffic scenario apart, the decline in oil price from the 2023 highs reached in late September bodes well for airlines. This is because expenses on fuel represent significant input costs for airlines.
Why Haven’t You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?
Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +6.2 average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +46.4%, +49.5% and +55.2% per year. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.
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/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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Griffon and Clearway Energy have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – December 8, 2023 – Zacks Equity Research shares Griffon (GFF - Free Report) as the Bull of the Day and Clearway Energy (CWEN - Free Report) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) , American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) and United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) .
Here is a synopsis of all five stocks.
Bull of the Day:
Griffon’s stock has offered investors the steady growth and value they look for in the portfolio and lands the Bull of the Day after being added to the Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) list on Thursday.
The multinational conglomerate and holding company has an expanding presence in the home and building products market along with the consumer and professional products markets.
After hitting 52-week highs of $50 a share this week there could still be plenty of upside for Griffon’s stock with the Average Zacks Price Target of $64.25 a share being 29% above current levels.
Performance Overview
Operating through several subsidiaries including The Ames Companies, Griffon’s stock has popped +39% in 2023 and has now soared over +150% in the last three years to largely outperform the broader indexes.
As one of its most lucrative subsidiaries, The Ames Companies has operations in Massachusetts that date back to 1774 etching its name in American history while becoming a leading North American manufacturer and a global provider of branded tools and products for home storage, organization, and landscaping.
Strengthening Outlook
Extending its impeccable price performance over the last few years was that Griffon was able to beat its fiscal fourth quarter earnings expectations by 22% last month.
Although Griffon’s current fiscal 2024 earnings are expected to dip -7% following a tougher-to-compete-against year, FY25 EPS is projected to rebound and soar 32% to $5.56 per share. More importantly, earnings estimate revisions for both FY24 and FY25 are nicely up over the last 60 days.
This is very compelling considering Griffon’s stock trades at a 12X forward earnings multiple which is a lofty discount to the S&P 500’s 21.2X and its Zacks Diversified Operations Markets' 22.9X with some of the notable names in the space including GM, 3M and Honeywell.
Bottom Line
In addition to sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Griffon’s stock has an “A” Zacks Style Scores grade for both Value and Growth. Checking many fundamental trading boxes there appears to be more room to run for GFF shares with Griffon offering a respectable 1.21% annual dividend yield as well.
Bear of the Day:
The long-term prospects of alternative energy player Clearway Energy may still be perplexing but unfortunately, there may be more short-term risk ahead landing its stock a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) and the Bear of the Day.
After widely missing earnings expectations for two consecutive quarters investors may want to curb their enthusiasm for Clearway’s luring 6.34% annual dividend yield amid weak renewable resource conditions and lower natural gas prices.
Weak Q3 Results: Notably, the Zacks Alternative Energy-Other Industry is in the bottom 39% of over 250 Zacks industries and Clearway’s Q3 results in November alluded to a tougher operating environment.
While Q3 sales of $371 million topped estimates by 8% earnings of $0.03 a share fell a very concerning -94% below expectations of $0.55 a share. This comes after Q2 earnings of $0.33 a share missed the Zacks Consensus of $0.55 a share by -40% in August.
Weaker Outlook: Largely attributing to Clearway’s strong sell rating, annual earnings estimates for fiscal 2023 are down -10% over the last 60 days while FY24 EPS estimates have fallen -11%.
On top of this, Clearway’s stock is already down -21% this year to vastly underperform the broader indexes and trail its Zacks Subindustry’s -14%.
Takeaway
While it’s far too soon to call Clearway Energy’s stock a value trap, investors may want to think twice before investing in the company at the moment considering its lucrative dividend yield but poor performance of late.
Additional content:
Here's Why Airline Stocks Are Soaring
Wednesday, Dec 6, saw U.S. airline stocks perform exceedingly well on the bourses. Shares of industrial heavyweights like Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines gained 3.54%, 2.67% and 3.38%, respectively, on Dec 6 over Dec 5’s closing. Consequently, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index appreciated 2.19% at the close of trading on Dec 6.
All of the above-mentioned companies currently carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
What Led to the Northward Price Movement?
The catalyst behind the impressive performance on the bourses was the bullish commentary of Delta’s management at the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference. After a record-breaking performance during the Thanksgiving holiday period, management expects another rosy performance in terms of traffic during Christmas, thereby ending the year on a strong note.
We remind investors that more than 5.3 million customers availed of DAL flights between Nov 17 and Nov 26. DAL operated more than 43,000 flights systemwide during this period to meet the buoyant air travel demand witnessed during the Thanksgiving holiday period.
At the investor event, management also sounded optimistic about international air travel in 2024 and stated that its performance with respect to Trans-Atlantic travel had been particularly strong in the current year, leading to a significant increase in capacity to meet the buoyant demand scenario. Management expects the strong Trans-Atlantic performance to continue next year, as advanced bookings remain strong and are anticipated to pick up as we approach March.
Highlighting that air travel demand has held up well over the past few weeks, DAL maintained the fourth-quarter and 2023 outlook that it provided in October with its third-quarter results. Fourth-quarter earnings are expected to be $1.05-$1.30 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $1.15 per share.
The adjusted operating margin in the December quarter is expected to be 9-11%. Management projects fourth-quarter total revenues (adjusted) to increase 9-12% on a year-over-year basis. DAL continues to anticipate adjusted earnings of $6.00-$6.25 per share for 2023. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $6.10 per share. For 2023, the adjusted operating margin is expected to be 11.5%. Management projects full-year total revenues (adjusted) to increase 20% on a year-over-year basis.
Airlines Regain Mojo Ahead of Year-End
The record traffic during the Thanksgiving period has provided the much-needed boost to airline stocks after a tough few months due to headwinds like high labor and fuel costs, and a slowdown in domestic air travel demand. We note that airline stocks have been performing well of late and the uptick on Dec 6 was part of that uptrend.
Over the past month, stocks in the Zacks Airline industry have gained 11.5%, handily outperforming the S&P 500’s 3.9% appreciation.
Similar to DAL, American Airlines and United Airlines have attracted huge traffic in the Thanksgiving travel period. AAL flights attracted 6.5 million customers over the Thanksgiving holiday, thereby establishing a record for the airline, with Nov 26 being its busiest day. UAL flights, too, were packed, with a record 3.2 million passengers flying between Nov 17 and Nov 23.
The upbeat air-traffic scenario apart, the decline in oil price from the 2023 highs reached in late September bodes well for airlines. This is because expenses on fuel represent significant input costs for airlines.
Why Haven’t You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?
Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +6.2 average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +46.4%, +49.5% and +55.2% per year. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.
See Stocks Free >>
Media Contact
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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/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.