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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: AcelRx, BioCryst, Build-A-Bear, CACI and Evercore
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For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – April 2, 2020 – 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 AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (BCRX - Free Report) , Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (BBW - Free Report) , CACI International Inc. (CACI - Free Report) and Evercore Inc. (EVR - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:
After Brutal Q1, Q2 Offers a Ray of Hope
The first three months of 2020 ended with a whimper, with the Dow logging its worst first quarter ever. In the quarter, the blue-chip index shed 23%, its steepest first-quarter decline on record and overall, its worst quarterly loss since the fourth quarter of 1987.
The S&P 500 also lost 20% in the first quarter, which marked the broader index’s sharpest decline since the 2008 financial crisis. Largely, U.S. stocks snapped the longest-ever bull market in history last month, and retreated from record peaks in February after the outlook for the domestic economy dimmed.
The economy has come to a standstill following the coronavirus outbreak and its devastating impact on human lives as well as corporate profits. The pandemic resulted in lockdowns and travel restrictions across the globe, eventually weighing on businesses.
Airlines, transportation and retail, or those dependent on cross-border supply chains incurred heavy losses. And many industries continue to remain vulnerable to social distancing and decline in global demand. Social distancing measures, in particular, impacted restaurant workers and hotel staff that make up a bulk portion of U.S. jobs.
But even though markets went into a coronavirus-led freefall in the first quarter, there is glimmer of hope in the second quarter for investors, if history is any guide. After the Dow sees a quarter as ugly as this year's first quarter, the 124-year old index on average returns 11.8% in the following quarter. And in such a year, the index had returned 22.75%, on average.
The S&P 500 has a similar trend. After it sees a quarter as brutal as this year’s first quarter, the index tends to return 12% in the following quarter and 27.79% throughout the year.
Meanwhile, Congress and the Fed promised to supply an overwhelming amount of aid to support the economy and markets, as the pandemic shuts down businesses. The White House and the Senate struck a deal for rescue package worth $2 trillion, which stands out to be the biggest congressional bailout in U.S. history.
The landmark agreement is expected to inject enough cash to bolster the economy, and provide the required liquidity and help stabilize financial markets. The Fed has also stepped up and released an array of stimulus measures to date. The central bank has trimmed interest rates to near zero and said that it would buy an unlimited amount of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities to stem the economic damage from the coronavirus outbreak.
John Normand added that such extraordinary stimulus measures have now set the stage for market stabilization, and that the market rout is most likely past its worst period now. In fact, bullish investors can also take comfort in April being traditionally the strongest calendar month for equities
Marc Chaikin, founder of Chaikin Analytics, said that “April has been up 80% of the time over the past 20 years.” The Stock Trader’s Almanac added that April has historically been a strong month for stocks, going back to World War II. The Dow and the S&P 500 gained an average of around 1.9% and 1.5%, respectively.
5 Best Stocks to Own in Q2
With the second quarter set to dispel the glum of the first, investing in fundamentally sound stocks that are poised to gain in the near term seems judicious. We have selected five such stocks that flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).
AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has risen 27.4% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have declined 36.8% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a promising 12.5%.
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biotechnology company. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 8.4% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have slipped 39.3% in the first quarter. But, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is an encouraging 29.4%.
Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc.operates as a specialty retailer of plush animals and related products. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has surged 22.2% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have tanked 57.9% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a stellar 62.5%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
CACI International Inc.provides information solutions and services. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has increased 1.3% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have declined 16% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a whopping 67.4%.
Evercore Inc.operates as an independent investment banking advisory firm. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.3% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have fallen 36.8% in the first quarter. But, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a solid 11.1%.
Today's Best Stocks from Zacks
Would you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2019, while the S&P 500 gained and impressive +53.6%, five of our strategies returned +65.8%, +97.1%, +118.0%, +175.7% and even +186.7%.
This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2019, while the S&P averaged +6.0% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +54.7% per year.
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
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 http://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: AcelRx, BioCryst, Build-A-Bear, CACI and Evercore
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – April 2, 2020 – 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 AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (BCRX - Free Report) , Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (BBW - Free Report) , CACI International Inc. (CACI - Free Report) and Evercore Inc. (EVR - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:
After Brutal Q1, Q2 Offers a Ray of Hope
The first three months of 2020 ended with a whimper, with the Dow logging its worst first quarter ever. In the quarter, the blue-chip index shed 23%, its steepest first-quarter decline on record and overall, its worst quarterly loss since the fourth quarter of 1987.
The S&P 500 also lost 20% in the first quarter, which marked the broader index’s sharpest decline since the 2008 financial crisis. Largely, U.S. stocks snapped the longest-ever bull market in history last month, and retreated from record peaks in February after the outlook for the domestic economy dimmed.
The economy has come to a standstill following the coronavirus outbreak and its devastating impact on human lives as well as corporate profits. The pandemic resulted in lockdowns and travel restrictions across the globe, eventually weighing on businesses.
Airlines, transportation and retail, or those dependent on cross-border supply chains incurred heavy losses. And many industries continue to remain vulnerable to social distancing and decline in global demand. Social distancing measures, in particular, impacted restaurant workers and hotel staff that make up a bulk portion of U.S. jobs.
But even though markets went into a coronavirus-led freefall in the first quarter, there is glimmer of hope in the second quarter for investors, if history is any guide. After the Dow sees a quarter as ugly as this year's first quarter, the 124-year old index on average returns 11.8% in the following quarter. And in such a year, the index had returned 22.75%, on average.
The S&P 500 has a similar trend. After it sees a quarter as brutal as this year’s first quarter, the index tends to return 12% in the following quarter and 27.79% throughout the year.
Meanwhile, Congress and the Fed promised to supply an overwhelming amount of aid to support the economy and markets, as the pandemic shuts down businesses. The White House and the Senate struck a deal for rescue package worth $2 trillion, which stands out to be the biggest congressional bailout in U.S. history.
The landmark agreement is expected to inject enough cash to bolster the economy, and provide the required liquidity and help stabilize financial markets. The Fed has also stepped up and released an array of stimulus measures to date. The central bank has trimmed interest rates to near zero and said that it would buy an unlimited amount of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities to stem the economic damage from the coronavirus outbreak.
John Normand added that such extraordinary stimulus measures have now set the stage for market stabilization, and that the market rout is most likely past its worst period now. In fact, bullish investors can also take comfort in April being traditionally the strongest calendar month for equities
Marc Chaikin, founder of Chaikin Analytics, said that “April has been up 80% of the time over the past 20 years.” The Stock Trader’s Almanac added that April has historically been a strong month for stocks, going back to World War II. The Dow and the S&P 500 gained an average of around 1.9% and 1.5%, respectively.
5 Best Stocks to Own in Q2
With the second quarter set to dispel the glum of the first, investing in fundamentally sound stocks that are poised to gain in the near term seems judicious. We have selected five such stocks that flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).
AcelRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has risen 27.4% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have declined 36.8% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a promising 12.5%.
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biotechnology company. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 8.4% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have slipped 39.3% in the first quarter. But, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is an encouraging 29.4%.
Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc.operates as a specialty retailer of plush animals and related products. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has surged 22.2% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have tanked 57.9% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a stellar 62.5%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
CACI International Inc.provides information solutions and services. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has increased 1.3% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have declined 16% in the first quarter. However, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a whopping 67.4%.
Evercore Inc.operates as an independent investment banking advisory firm. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 0.3% over the past 60 days. The company’s shares have fallen 36.8% in the first quarter. But, the company’s expected earnings growth rate for the second quarter is a solid 11.1%.
Today's Best Stocks from Zacks
Would you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2019, while the S&P 500 gained and impressive +53.6%, five of our strategies returned +65.8%, +97.1%, +118.0%, +175.7% and even +186.7%.
This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2019, while the S&P averaged +6.0% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +54.7% per year.
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Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
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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 http://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.