Back to top

Image: Bigstock

The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Assertio Holdings, Brookfield Infrastructure, UnitedHealth and General Mills.

Read MoreHide Full Article

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – July 6, 2022 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Assertio Holdings, Inc. (ASRT - Free Report) , Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (BIP - Free Report) , UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH - Free Report) , and General Mills, Inc. (GIS - Free Report) .

Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:

Beat the Market Like Zacks with These In-Focus Stocks

Last week, the three most widely followed indexes posted their fourth losing week in five. The S&P 500 fell 2.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.3% and 4.1%, respectively.

Recession fears took center stage as economic data released through the week showed declines in consumer spending and disposable income. Concerns over further monetary-policy tightening cast a pall over the markets.

The real bottom of this market cycle could still be ahead. While the economy is yet to enter a recession, the odds of Wall Street returning to a bull market soon are pretty low.  

Regardless of market conditions, we, here at Zacks, provide investors with unbiased guidance on how to beat the market.  

Zacks Research guided investors last week with its time-tested methodologies as usual. Given the prevailing market uncertainty, you may want to look at our feats to prepare better for your next action.

Here are some of our key achievements from last week:

Assertio Holdings, Inc. Stock Jumps on Zacks Rank Upgrade

Shares of Assertio Holdings, Inc. gained 15.4% since it was upgraded to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) on June 25. The rating upgrade was primarily driven by an upward trend in earnings estimates, one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices. A company's changing earnings picture is at the core of the Zacks rating.  

For ASRT, the consensus EPS estimate of $0.40 for the current year has been revised up 14.3% over the past two months.

Rising earnings estimates and the consequent Zacks Rank upgrade for ASRT imply an improvement in the company's underlying business. And investors have started showing their appreciation for this improving business trend by pushing the stock higher.

The Zacks Rank stock-rating system, which uses four factors related to earnings estimates to classify stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive externally-audited track record, with Zacks Rank #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +24.8% since 1988. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>

Check Assertio's historical EPS and Sales here>>>

Zacks Focus List Model Portfolio Stock Brookfield Infra Surges   

Shares of Stock Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., which belongs to the Zacks Focus List, have shot up nearly 5% over the past week. The Zacks Focus List is a model portfolio of 50 hand-picked stocks that possess the right fundamental ingredients to outperform the market over the next 12 months. These 50 stocks are picked from a long list of stocks with the highest Zacks Rank.

Brookfield was added to the Focus List on August 16, 2019, at $26.46 per share. The stock has gained 47.1% since then to close the last trading session at $38.93.

Since its inception on February 1, 1996, the Focus List portfolio has delivered an annualized return of +12.9%.

Unlock all of our powerful research, tools and analysis, including the Focus List, Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research Reports, Zacks Earnings ESP Filter, Premium Screener and more, as part of Zacks Premium. Gain full access now >>

Zacks ECAP Stock UnitedHealth Delivers Solid Returns

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, a component of our Earnings Certain Admiral Portfolio (ECAP), surged 4.4% last week. ECAP is a model portfolio of 30 concentrated, ultra-defensive, long-term Buy and Hold stocks.  

With little to no turnover and annual rebalance periodicity, the ECAP seeks to minimize capital loss by holding shares of companies whose earnings streams exhibit a proven 20+ year track record of surviving recessionary periods with minimal impact on aggregate earnings growth relative to the overall S&P 500.

In terms of last week's returns, Church & Dwight Co., Inc. (CHD) and The Clorox Company (CLX) followed UnitedHealth with 2.9% and 2.2% gains, respectively.

The ECAP and many other model portfolios are available as part of Zacks Advisor Tools, a cloud-based solution to access Zacks award-winning stock, mutual fund and ETF research. Click here to schedule a demo.

Zacks ECDP Stock General Mills Witnesses Significant Growth

General Mills, Inc., which is part of our Earnings Certain Dividend Portfolio (ECDP), jumped 7.3% last week. The inclination of investors toward quality dividend stocks to secure an income stream amid the heightened market volatility backed this performance. Check General Mill's dividend history here>>>

With an extremely low Beta and a history of minimum earnings variability over the last 20+ years, this 25-stock portfolio helps significantly mitigate risk. The ECDP has consistently outperformed the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (NOBL).

Click here to access this portfolio on Zacks Advisor Tools.  

Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?

Our 5 best-performing strategies have blown away the S&P's impressive +28.8% gain in 2021. Amazingly, they soared +40.3%, +48.2%, +67.6%, +94.4%, and +95.3%. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.

See Stocks Free >>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com                                      

https://www.zacks.com                                                 

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.

Published in