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Why Investors Need to Take Advantage of These 2 Retail and Wholesale 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 Earnings ESP is more formally known as the Expected Surprise Prediction, and it aims to grab the inside track on the latest analyst estimate revisions ahead of a company's report. The idea is relatively intuitive as a newer projection might be based on more complete 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.

When we join a positive earnings ESP with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or stronger, stocks posted a positive bottom-line surprise 70% of the time. Plus, this system saw investors produce roughly 28% 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 MercadoLibre?

Now that we understand what the ESP is and how beneficial it can be, let's dive into a stock that currently fits the bill. MercadoLibre (MELI - Free Report) earns a #2 (Buy) right now and its Most Accurate Estimate sits at $12.56 a share, just 30 days from its upcoming earnings release on November 6, 2024.

MELI has an Earnings ESP figure of +11.42%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $12.56 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $11.27. MercadoLibre is one of a large database of stocks with positive ESPs. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

MELI is just one of a large group of Retail and Wholesale stocks with a positive ESP figure. Wingstop (WING - Free Report) is another qualifying stock you may want to consider.

Slated to report earnings on October 30, 2024, Wingstop holds a #3 (Hold) ranking on the Zacks Rank, and it's Most Accurate Estimate is $0.99 a share 23 days from its next quarterly update.

For Wingstop, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.96 is +2.99%.

MELI and WING's positive ESP metrics may signal that a positive earnings surprise for both stocks is on the horizon.

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 >>


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


MercadoLibre, Inc. (MELI) - free report >>

Wingstop Inc. (WING) - free report >>

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