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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Caterpillar, JPMorgan Chase, Home Depot and Merck & Co
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For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – November 2, 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: Caterpillar (CAT - Free Report) , JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM - Free Report) , Home Depot (HD - Free Report) and Merck & Co. (MRK - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
4 Blue-Chip Stocks to Buy as Dow Seals Record October Gains
U.S. stocks slipped on Oct 31 as investors keep an eye on how much the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates this week to tame stubbornly high inflation. Lest we forget, the Fed's hawkish stance did batter the stock market for the most part of the year. However, despite Monday's losses, the major bourses were able to lock in gains for the month of October.
While the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were able to notch single-digit gains in October, it's the Dow that soared 14% and registered its best month since 1976. The blue-chip index, in fact, made a commendable comeback in October and snapped a two-month losing streak. The 30-stock index ended in the green for the month as investors continued to place their bets on traditional companies like banks.
Most importantly, the blue-chip index primarily comprises energy and industrial stocks, which no doubt have been among the best-performing sectors since the beginning of this year. Energy shares have been gaining due to the rise in oil prices. In fact, the international benchmark for oil prices — Brent crude — jumped 7.8% last month.
Oil prices, by the way, scaled north mostly due to the Russia-Ukraine war, and the resurgence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in China since all these led to a demand-supply disparity. Similarly, industrial shares gained, thanks to a thriving manufacturing sector, which is already boosting economic growth throughout the United States.
Talking about the economy, third-quarter GDP increased faster than expected and eased recession fears. In reality, it was the first positive quarter this year that witnessed the blue-chip stocks climbing northward.
Another reason that led to the Dow notching remarkable gains last month was its lack of exposure to mega-cap tech stocks. These stocks, unfortunately, took a beating in recent times due to discouraging earnings results.
For instance, blue-chip tech stocks like Verizon and Microsoft saw their shares tank over the course of October. While Verizon reported a decline in subscriber gains in the third quarter, Microsoft witnessed a slowdown in its cloud-computing business.
Nonetheless, with the broader blue-chip index witnessing a sharp run-up in October, it's prudent to invest in blue-chip stocks that not only gained last month but also are poised to add more gains, banking on solid cash flows and a strong balance sheet. We have, thus, selected four such blue-chip stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Caterpillar is the largest global construction and mining equipment manufacturer. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.9% over the past 60 days. CAT's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 18%.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is one of the biggest global banks. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 3.2% over the past 60 days. JPM's expected earnings growth rate for the next five-year period is 5%.
Home Depot is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.5% over the past 60 days. HD's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 7.2%.
Merck & Co. operates as a healthcare company worldwide. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its next-year earnings has moved up 1.8% over the past 60 days. MRK's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 22.1%.
Shares of Caterpillar, JPMorgan, Home Depot and Merck, incidentally, have gained 31.9%, 20.5%, 7.3% and 17.5%, individually, in October.
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.
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.
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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Caterpillar, JPMorgan Chase, Home Depot and Merck & Co
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – November 2, 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: Caterpillar (CAT - Free Report) , JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM - Free Report) , Home Depot (HD - Free Report) and Merck & Co. (MRK - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
4 Blue-Chip Stocks to Buy as Dow Seals Record October Gains
U.S. stocks slipped on Oct 31 as investors keep an eye on how much the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates this week to tame stubbornly high inflation. Lest we forget, the Fed's hawkish stance did batter the stock market for the most part of the year. However, despite Monday's losses, the major bourses were able to lock in gains for the month of October.
While the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were able to notch single-digit gains in October, it's the Dow that soared 14% and registered its best month since 1976. The blue-chip index, in fact, made a commendable comeback in October and snapped a two-month losing streak. The 30-stock index ended in the green for the month as investors continued to place their bets on traditional companies like banks.
Most importantly, the blue-chip index primarily comprises energy and industrial stocks, which no doubt have been among the best-performing sectors since the beginning of this year. Energy shares have been gaining due to the rise in oil prices. In fact, the international benchmark for oil prices — Brent crude — jumped 7.8% last month.
Oil prices, by the way, scaled north mostly due to the Russia-Ukraine war, and the resurgence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in China since all these led to a demand-supply disparity. Similarly, industrial shares gained, thanks to a thriving manufacturing sector, which is already boosting economic growth throughout the United States.
Talking about the economy, third-quarter GDP increased faster than expected and eased recession fears. In reality, it was the first positive quarter this year that witnessed the blue-chip stocks climbing northward.
Another reason that led to the Dow notching remarkable gains last month was its lack of exposure to mega-cap tech stocks. These stocks, unfortunately, took a beating in recent times due to discouraging earnings results.
For instance, blue-chip tech stocks like Verizon and Microsoft saw their shares tank over the course of October. While Verizon reported a decline in subscriber gains in the third quarter, Microsoft witnessed a slowdown in its cloud-computing business.
Nonetheless, with the broader blue-chip index witnessing a sharp run-up in October, it's prudent to invest in blue-chip stocks that not only gained last month but also are poised to add more gains, banking on solid cash flows and a strong balance sheet. We have, thus, selected four such blue-chip stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Caterpillar is the largest global construction and mining equipment manufacturer. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.9% over the past 60 days. CAT's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 18%.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is one of the biggest global banks. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 3.2% over the past 60 days. JPM's expected earnings growth rate for the next five-year period is 5%.
Home Depot is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.5% over the past 60 days. HD's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 7.2%.
Merck & Co. operates as a healthcare company worldwide. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its next-year earnings has moved up 1.8% over the past 60 days. MRK's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 22.1%.
Shares of Caterpillar, JPMorgan, Home Depot and Merck, incidentally, have gained 31.9%, 20.5%, 7.3% and 17.5%, individually, in October.
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.
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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.