At the end of every year, major publications like the Wall Street Journal produce a list of stocks with the biggest gains. What do these stocks have in common? Almost without fail these companies experienced a surge in earnings that greatly surpassed expectations - and the stock subsequently soared. Another term for this surge is positive earnings momentum.
On the flip side, stocks that fell the most during the year experienced negative earnings momentum. To sum it up:
- Good earnings beget more good earnings beget higher share prices
- Bad earnings beget more bad earnings beget lower share prices
As investors, our goal is to line our portfolios with as many stocks experiencing positive earnings momentum as possible. That's because this one element is the key catalyst behind share price momentum.
How do we find more of these stocks? First we must understand the dynamics of earnings momentum.
Dynamics of Earnings Momentum
Publicly-traded companies are large organisms that include many employees, products, buildings, equipment, etc. When they are experiencing positive earnings momentum, it means that most everything is going right; i.e. a great management team, first rate products and services, happy employees and delighted customers.
These aspects have a self-reinforcing quality that will keep the company headed in the right direction for an extended period of time. The result being a string of earnings reports well above expectations and a booming stock price.
However, the company experiencing negative earnings momentum will behave in the opposite way; a poor management team, inferior products and services, disgruntled employees and dissatisfied customers fleeing to the competition. As you know, this is very bad for corporate profits and thus the stock price.
I like to think of a company as a large freight train stretching as far as the eye can see. When things are going well, the train just keeps rolling down the track. There is a positive rattle and hum to that train that everyone enjoys.
More...
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Your Unique Chance to See ALL Zacks Picks Ends May 13
Right now is the best time to claim full access to all of our private buy and sell recommendations. You'll even see the stocks that are so exclusive that they've been closed to the public.
While the market broke dead even in 2011, we closed out 87 double-digit winners. And so far in 2012, even through recent ups and downs, we added 27 more of these monster gains. Today, the picks are backed by the boldest guarantee we ever made.
Get our latest stocks today >>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now imagine the conductor notices that the train is going in the wrong direction. The train is headed south when it needs to go north. Now ask yourself how much time and energy does it take to stop that train? Even worse, how long will it take to back the train up to a spot where it can turn around?
The same is true for a large company that's headed in the wrong direction. Do you think it can be turned around in one quarter? Or two?
History shows that not to be the case. Yet too many of us are content to hold onto stocks that have earnings disappointments only to see share prices continue to plummet. I cannot say this emphatically enough...
SELL ALL COMPANIES WITH NEGATIVE EARNINGS SURPRISES...IMMEDIATELY!!!
How to Find Companies with Positive Earnings Momentum?
It's actually quite easy. Len Zacks scientifically proved over 30 years ago that companies receiving increased earnings estimates from brokerage research analysts will more likely beat earnings expectations in the future. The essence of his finding was placed into our Zacks Rank stock picking model.
You've probably heard us pound our chest about the +26% annual return for the #1 Ranked - Strong Buy stocks. We couldn't say it if it wasn't true.
However, on any given day there are more than 200 stocks with a #1 Ranking. Even if you gave up your day job it might be hard to stay on top of all these attractive stocks. So the question becomes what to do next?
My recommendation is to try one of our subscription services where a Zacks expert hand selects the stocks for you. Better yet, they tell you exactly when to get in and when to get out so you can maximize profits.
The best way to select the service that's right for you is to try them all. That's why we created Zacks Ultimate. With it, you gain access to every one of our stock-picking services, even those currently closed to new investors. Starting now, you're invited to try Zacks Ultimate for 30 days at special terms and be supported by the boldest guarantee we ever made.
If you're interested to learn more, be sure to do so now as this special opportunity ends Sunday, May 13...
About Zacks Ultimate
Wishing you great financial success,
Steve
Steve Reitmeister has been with Zacks since 1999 and currently serves as the Executive Vice President in charge of Zacks.com and all of its leading products for individual investors, including Zacks Ultimate.
This page is temporarily not available. Please check later as it should be available shortly. If you have any questions, please email customer support at support@zacks.com or call 800-767-3771 ext. 9339.
At the end of every year, major publications like the Wall Street Journal produce a list of stocks with the biggest gains. What do these stocks have in common? Almost without fail these companies experienced a surge in earnings that greatly surpassed expectations - and the stock subsequently soared. Another term for this surge is positive earnings momentum.
On the flip side, stocks that fell the most during the year experienced negative earnings momentum. To sum it up:
As investors, our goal is to line our portfolios with as many stocks experiencing positive earnings momentum as possible. That's because this one element is the key catalyst behind share price momentum.
How do we find more of these stocks? First we must understand the dynamics of earnings momentum.
Dynamics of Earnings Momentum
Publicly-traded companies are large organisms that include many employees, products, buildings, equipment, etc. When they are experiencing positive earnings momentum, it means that most everything is going right; i.e. a great management team, first rate products and services, happy employees and delighted customers.
These aspects have a self-reinforcing quality that will keep the company headed in the right direction for an extended period of time. The result being a string of earnings reports well above expectations and a booming stock price.
However, the company experiencing negative earnings momentum will behave in the opposite way; a poor management team, inferior products and services, disgruntled employees and dissatisfied customers fleeing to the competition. As you know, this is very bad for corporate profits and thus the stock price.
I like to think of a company as a large freight train stretching as far as the eye can see. When things are going well, the train just keeps rolling down the track. There is a positive rattle and hum to that train that everyone enjoys.
More...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your Unique Chance to See ALL Zacks Picks Ends May 13
Right now is the best time to claim full access to all of our private buy and sell recommendations. You'll even see the stocks that are so exclusive that they've been closed to the public.
While the market broke dead even in 2011, we closed out 87 double-digit winners. And so far in 2012, even through recent ups and downs, we added 27 more of these monster gains. Today, the picks are backed by the boldest guarantee we ever made.
Get our latest stocks today >>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now imagine the conductor notices that the train is going in the wrong direction. The train is headed south when it needs to go north. Now ask yourself how much time and energy does it take to stop that train? Even worse, how long will it take to back the train up to a spot where it can turn around?
The same is true for a large company that's headed in the wrong direction. Do you think it can be turned around in one quarter? Or two?
History shows that not to be the case. Yet too many of us are content to hold onto stocks that have earnings disappointments only to see share prices continue to plummet. I cannot say this emphatically enough...
SELL ALL COMPANIES WITH NEGATIVE EARNINGS SURPRISES...IMMEDIATELY!!!
How to Find Companies with Positive Earnings Momentum?
It's actually quite easy. Len Zacks scientifically proved over 30 years ago that companies receiving increased earnings estimates from brokerage research analysts will more likely beat earnings expectations in the future. The essence of his finding was placed into our Zacks Rank stock picking model.
You've probably heard us pound our chest about the +26% annual return for the #1 Ranked - Strong Buy stocks. We couldn't say it if it wasn't true.
However, on any given day there are more than 200 stocks with a #1 Ranking. Even if you gave up your day job it might be hard to stay on top of all these attractive stocks. So the question becomes what to do next?
My recommendation is to try one of our subscription services where a Zacks expert hand selects the stocks for you. Better yet, they tell you exactly when to get in and when to get out so you can maximize profits.
The best way to select the service that's right for you is to try them all. That's why we created Zacks Ultimate. With it, you gain access to every one of our stock-picking services, even those currently closed to new investors. Starting now, you're invited to try Zacks Ultimate for 30 days at special terms and be supported by the boldest guarantee we ever made.
If you're interested to learn more, be sure to do so now as this special opportunity ends Sunday, May 13...
About Zacks Ultimate
Wishing you great financial success,
Steve
Steve Reitmeister has been with Zacks since 1999 and currently serves as the Executive Vice President in charge of Zacks.com and all of its leading products for individual investors, including Zacks Ultimate.