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Why Investors Need to Take Advantage of These 2 Computer and Technology 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.

Hunting for 'earnings whispers' or companies poised to beat their quarterly earnings estimates is a somewhat common practice. But that doesn't make it easy. One way that has been proven to work is by using the Zacks Earnings ESP tool.

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.

With this in mind, the Expected Surprise Prediction compares the Most Accurate Estimate (being the most recent) against the overall Zacks Consensus Estimate. The percentage difference provides the ESP figure. The system also utilizes our core Zacks Rank to provide a stronger system for identifying stocks that might beat their next quarterly earnings estimate and possibly see the stock price climb.

In fact, when we combined a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better and a positive Earnings ESP, stocks produced a positive surprise 70% of the time. Perhaps most importantly, using these parameters has helped produce 28.3% annual returns on average, according to our 10 year backtest.

Stocks with a ranking of #3 (Hold), or 60% of all stocks covered by the Zacks Rank, are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. Stocks with rankings of #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy), 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 NetEase?

The last thing we will do today, now that we have a grasp on the ESP and how powerful of a tool it can be, is to quickly look at a qualifying stock. NetEase (NTES - Free Report) holds a #1 (Strong Buy) at the moment and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $1.64 a share 30 days away from its upcoming earnings release on November 16, 2023.

NetEase's Earnings ESP sits at +5.13%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $1.64 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.56. NTES is also part of a large group of stocks that boast a positive ESP. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

NTES is one of just a large database of Computer and Technology stocks with positive ESPs. Another solid-looking stock is Paypal (PYPL - Free Report) .

Paypal, which is readying to report earnings on November 1, 2023, sits at a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) right now. It's Most Accurate Estimate is currently $1.23 a share, and PYPL is 15 days out from its next earnings report.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Paypal is $1.22, and when you take the percentage difference between that number and its Most Accurate Estimate, you get the Earnings ESP figure of +0.71%.

Because both stocks hold a positive Earnings ESP, NTES and PYPL could potentially post earnings beats in their next reports.

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:


NetEase, Inc. (NTES) - free report >>

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) - free report >>

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