Top Performer for Tues: CARBO Ceramics (CRR)

CARBO Ceramics Inc. (CRR - Snapshot Report) has watched earnings estimates for this year and next rise sharply in the days following its third-quarter announcement on Oct 29.

Furthermore, with shares gaining more than 7.5% on a down morning for the market, CRR finds itself as a top-performing Zacks #1 Rank company. Volume is at 339,000 shares, approaching the daily average of more than 373,000.

CARBO Ceramics is the world's largest supplier of ceramic proppant, the provider of the world's most popular fracture simulation software, and provides leading fracture design and consulting services. It also provides a broad range of technologies for spill prevention, containment and geotechnical monitoring.

It is 1 of only 2 companies from the oil field services industry on the Zacks #1 Rank List, which includes 229 stocks today. The other company is Geokinetics Inc. (GOK - Snapshot Report).

CRR is also being featured today as the Momentum Stock of the Day.

Earnings Estimates

The past 7 days have seen 5 of 8 covering analysts revise higher for this year, sending the Zacks Consensus Estimate to $2.18 per share. That marks a gain of 10.7%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year is up to $2.35 per share, or 9.8% better than 7 days ago. That gain was made possible by raised outlooks from 4 of 7 covering analysts. The guidance also suggests year-over-year profit growth of 7.8%.

Third-Quarter Report

CARBO Ceramics announced earnings per share of 62 cents for its third quarter, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 42 cents by nearly 48%. The company has a good record of surpassing quarterly earnings expectations. Over the past 4 quarters, it has put together an average surprise of more than 24%.

Revenue declined to $91.8 million from $102.6 million. However, it was up 32% from the previous quarter.

"From our perspective, we believe that a sustainable recovery in the oil and gas industry is inevitable; however, the exact timing of the recovery is difficult to pinpoint," said CEO Gary Kolstad. "We remain committed to expanding our client base and product and service offerings."