Monday, June 4, 2018

The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Visa (V), Medtronic (MDT) and Salesforce (CRM). These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>

Visa’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Financial Transaction Services industry over the last year (+35.5% vs. +32.9%). The company is witnessing growth in payments volume, cross-border volume and processed transactions as a strong economy and a positive consumer sentiment drives higher spending.

Numerous strategic acquisitions and alliances, technology upgrades and effective marketing have paved the way for its long-term growth and consistent revenue improvement. The Zacks analyst thinks Visa is well poised to gain from the growing electronic payment processing and strong international business. A solid balance sheet ensures effective capital deployment.

The stock has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings being revised 2% upward over the last 60 days. Nevertheless, high client incentives might put pressure on revenues.

(You can read the full research report on Visa here >>>).

Shares of Medtronic have outperformed the Zacks Medical Products industry in the last three months, gaining +10.1% vs. +6.1%. Medtronic exited the fiscal 2018 on a solid note with better-than-expected fourth quarter performances. All major business groups contributed to solid top-line growth at CER, highlighting sustainability across groups and regions, in addition to displaying successful integration and achievement of synergy targets.

The Zacks analyst thinks the gradually stabilizing CRHF market holds promise. The receipt of FDA approval for the DBS therapy as adjunctive treatment to reduce partial-onset seizures buoys optimism. The company is also focusing on geographical diversification of its businesses. Medtronic is highly positive about its foray into the $1 billion standalone CGM market with its Guardian Connect.

However, escalating costs and expenses continue to weigh on the bottom line. The company’s 2019 guidance remains conservative on apprehension of lackluster CVG and MITG performances.

(You can read the full research report on Medtronic here >>>).

Salesforce’s shares have handily beaten the broader Tech sector over the last year, with the stock up nearly three time the Zacks Technology sector's +15.4% gain. Salesforce reported stellar first-quarter fiscal 2019 results on the back of rapid adoption of the company’s cloud-based solutions.

The Zacks analyst thinks enhancement of customer experience via artificial intelligence related innovations have further aided the growth. Additionally, strategic acquisitions and the resultant synergies are anticipated to prove conducive to growth over the long run.

Furthermore, the company is on track to reach its $20 billion annual revenue mark. Nonetheless, stiff competition and an increase in investments for international expansions and data centers could negatively impact near-term profitability.

(You can read the full research report on Salesforce here >>>).

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include VMware (VMW), Dollar General (DG) and Martin Marietta (MLM).

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Mark Vickery

Senior Editor

Note: Sheraz Mian heads the Zacks Equity Research department and is a well-regarded expert of aggregate earnings. He is frequently quoted in the print and electronic media and publishes the weekly Earnings Trends and Earnings Preview reports. If you want an email notification each time Sheraz publishes a new article, please click here>>>