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Bet on These 5 Best Stocks with Upgraded Broker Ratings

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A basic fundamental analysis is not enough to choose stocks that have the potential to generate attractive returns. An effective and easy way to zero in on the right stocks is to follow broker rating upgrades.

Brokers have a deeper understanding of companies, sectors and the overall economy. Also, they directly communicate with top management. Further, brokers carefully go through the company’s publicly available documents and attend conference calls.

Also, they scrutinize the fundamentals of a company and place them against the current economic backdrop to determine how the stock will fare as an investment option. So, by following broker rating upgrades, you can effortlessly find stocks with solid returns.

Nonetheless, solely depending on broker upgrades is not the right way to build your portfolio. You must take into account certain other factors to ensure steady returns.

Choosing the Winning Strategy

We have a screening strategy that will help in your search for potential winners:

Broker Rating Upgrades (4 weeks): The screen selects stocks that have witnessed broker rating upgrades over the last four weeks.

Current Price greater than 5: The stocks must be trading above $5.

Average 20-day Volume greater than 100,000: A large trading volume guarantees that the stock is easily tradable.

Zacks Rank equal to #1: No matter whether market conditions are good or bad, stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) have a proven record of success. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

VGM Score equal to A or B: Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 (Buy) offer the best upside potential.

Here are five of the 11 stocks that made it through the screen:

Headquartered in New York, Weight Watchers International, Inc. (WTW - Free Report) offers weight management services. The company boasts a strong surprise history, with a trailing four-quarter average beat of 24.3%. The stock witnessed 4.8% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Headquartered in Southport, CT, Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (RGR - Free Report) designs, manufactures and sells firearms under the Ruger trademark. The company boasts a strong surprise history, with a trailing four-quarter average beat of 22.7%. The stock witnessed 25% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Greenwood Village, CO-based Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (RRGB - Free Report) develops, operates, and franchises casual-dining and fast-casual restaurants. Over the trailing four quarters, the company delivered an average positive surprise of 17.3%. The stock witnessed 22.2% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

TopBuild Corp. (BLD - Free Report) , headquartered in Daytona Beach, FL, is engaged in the installation, distribution, and sale of insulation and other building products to the construction industry. Over the trailing four quarters, the company delivered an average positive surprise of 6%. The stock witnessed 6.7% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Fort Washington, PA-based Nutrisystem, Inc. provides weight management products and services for women and men. Over the trailing four quarters, the company delivered an average positive surprise of 17.5%. The stock witnessed 10.3% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Get the rest of the stocks on the list and start putting this and other ideas to the test. It can all be done with the Research Wizard stock picking and back testing software.

The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.

Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.

Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance


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