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Why Investors Need to Take Advantage of These 2 Finance Stocks Now
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Wall Street watches a company's quarterly report closely to understand as much as possible about its recent performance and what to expect going forward. Of course, one figure often stands out among the rest: earnings.
Life and the stock market are both about expectations, and rising above what is expected is often rewarded, while falling short can come with negative consequences. Investors might want to try to capture stronger returns by finding positive earnings surprises.
The ability to identify stocks that are likely to top quarterly earnings expectations can be profitable, but it's no simple task. Here at Zacks, our Earnings ESP filter helps make things easier.
The Zacks Earnings ESP, Explained
The Zacks Expected Surprise Prediction, or ESP, works by locking in on the most up-to-date analyst earnings revisions because they can be more accurate than estimates from weeks or even months before the actual release date. The thinking is pretty straightforward: analysts who provide earnings estimates closer to the report are likely to have more information.
Now that we understand the basic idea, let's look at how the Expected Surprise Prediction works. The ESP is calculated by comparing the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, with the percentage difference between the two giving us the Zacks ESP figure.
In fact, when we combined a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better and a positive Earnings ESP, stocks produced a positive surprise 70% of the time. Perhaps most importantly, using these parameters has helped produce 28.3% annual returns on average, according to our 10 year backtest.
Stocks with a #3 (Hold) ranking, which is most stocks covered at 60%, are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. But stocks that fall into the #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy) ranking, or the top 15% and top 5% of stocks, respectively, should outperform the market. Strong Buy stocks should outperform more than any other rank.
Should You Consider American Express?
The final step today is to look at a stock that meets our ESP qualifications. American Express (AXP - Free Report) earns a #2 (Buy) 14 days from its next quarterly earnings release on October 18, 2024, and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $3.30 a share.
American Express' Earnings ESP sits at +0.92%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $3.30 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.27. AXP is also part of a large group of stocks that boast a positive ESP. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.
AXP is just one of a large group of Finance stocks with a positive ESP figure. Trustmark (TRMK - Free Report) is another qualifying stock you may want to consider.
Slated to report earnings on October 22, 2024, Trustmark holds a #3 (Hold) ranking on the Zacks Rank, and it's Most Accurate Estimate is $0.84 a share 18 days from its next quarterly update.
For Trustmark, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.83 is +0.6%.
Because both stocks hold a positive Earnings ESP, AXP and TRMK could potentially post earnings beats in their next reports.
Find Stocks to Buy or Sell Before They're Reported
Use the Zacks Earnings ESP Filter to turn up stocks with the highest probability of positively, or negatively, surprising to buy or sell before they're reported for profitable earnings season trading. Check it out here >>
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Why Investors Need to Take Advantage of These 2 Finance Stocks Now
Wall Street watches a company's quarterly report closely to understand as much as possible about its recent performance and what to expect going forward. Of course, one figure often stands out among the rest: earnings.
Life and the stock market are both about expectations, and rising above what is expected is often rewarded, while falling short can come with negative consequences. Investors might want to try to capture stronger returns by finding positive earnings surprises.
The ability to identify stocks that are likely to top quarterly earnings expectations can be profitable, but it's no simple task. Here at Zacks, our Earnings ESP filter helps make things easier.
The Zacks Earnings ESP, Explained
The Zacks Expected Surprise Prediction, or ESP, works by locking in on the most up-to-date analyst earnings revisions because they can be more accurate than estimates from weeks or even months before the actual release date. The thinking is pretty straightforward: analysts who provide earnings estimates closer to the report are likely to have more information.
Now that we understand the basic idea, let's look at how the Expected Surprise Prediction works. The ESP is calculated by comparing the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, with the percentage difference between the two giving us the Zacks ESP figure.
In fact, when we combined a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better and a positive Earnings ESP, stocks produced a positive surprise 70% of the time. Perhaps most importantly, using these parameters has helped produce 28.3% annual returns on average, according to our 10 year backtest.
Stocks with a #3 (Hold) ranking, which is most stocks covered at 60%, are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. But stocks that fall into the #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy) ranking, or the top 15% and top 5% of stocks, respectively, should outperform the market. Strong Buy stocks should outperform more than any other rank.
Should You Consider American Express?
The final step today is to look at a stock that meets our ESP qualifications. American Express (AXP - Free Report) earns a #2 (Buy) 14 days from its next quarterly earnings release on October 18, 2024, and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $3.30 a share.
American Express' Earnings ESP sits at +0.92%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $3.30 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.27. AXP is also part of a large group of stocks that boast a positive ESP. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.
AXP is just one of a large group of Finance stocks with a positive ESP figure. Trustmark (TRMK - Free Report) is another qualifying stock you may want to consider.
Slated to report earnings on October 22, 2024, Trustmark holds a #3 (Hold) ranking on the Zacks Rank, and it's Most Accurate Estimate is $0.84 a share 18 days from its next quarterly update.
For Trustmark, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.83 is +0.6%.
Because both stocks hold a positive Earnings ESP, AXP and TRMK could potentially post earnings beats in their next reports.
Find Stocks to Buy or Sell Before They're Reported
Use the Zacks Earnings ESP Filter to turn up stocks with the highest probability of positively, or negatively, surprising to buy or sell before they're reported for profitable earnings season trading. Check it out here >>