We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Chegg, Nautilus Group, Sprouts Farmers Market, VeriSign and Vertex Pharmaceuticals
Read MoreHide Full Article
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – May 20, 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: Chegg Inc. (CHGG - Free Report) , Nautilus Group Inc. , Sprouts Farmers Market Inc. (SFM - Free Report) , VeriSign, Inc. (VRSN - Free Report) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
5 Reasons Why Growth Stocks Will Soar Higher
Despite massive job losses and huge corporate earnings weakness, Wall Street has gathered steam lately. A few positive developments on the vaccine front along with unprecedented economic help from the government and the central bank have made this possible.
Reopening of economies is also acting as a huge positive for the markets. We expect growth stocks to gain ahead on a plethora of tailwinds. Below we highlight those in detail.
Fed Still Not Out of Ammunition
The Fed chairman cautioned that the current downturn “may last until late 2021.” He also said that the U.S. economy could "easily" contract by 30% in the second quarter. However, he expressed confidence that the economy would recover over the long term and said he would never bet against the U.S. economy. He does not see the economy entering another Depression, per CNBC.
A super-dovish Fed and a Congress, which have already passed about $3 trillion in rescue funds and are planning another round, would hold the economy back from slipping into Depression. The Fed also indicated that the central bank is not out of ammunition and can expand existing programs or add new ones, if needed. Notably, since March, the Fed cut rates to zero, launched an unlimited QE which included buying of corporate rate and some high-yield bond ETFs too. The Fed also launched a MainStreet Lending program.
U.S. Government’s Massive Stimulus
Congress has already passed about $3 trillion in rescue funds. Small caps were offered a $349 billion forgivable loan program. The loans at issue were being made through the Paycheck Protection Program, which included payments of up to $1,200 to eligible U.S. taxpayers and $500 for each child age 16 or younger. The IRS began sending checks in the middle of April, and by the start of May the agency had made more than 130 million payments.
The U.S. government is also considering The Heroes Act worth $1 trillion. The act intends to provide funds to state, local, territorial and tribal governments who need funds to pay key workers. Funds will also be there for treatments and researches. There could be a second round payments through a $1,200 stimulus check.
Some Positive Medical Developments
Shares of Moderna soared on Monday after it reported positive results from early human tests of its vaccine candidate for the coronavirus. According to the company, the vaccine produced COVID-19 antibodies in all 45 participants. Last week, Novavax's shares skyrocketed after it announced that Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations or CEPI will invest up to $384 million in the development and production of NVX-CoV2373, Novavax's vaccine candidate against coronavirus.
Upbeat Economic Datapoints
The University of Michigan’s U.S. consumer sentiment index came in at 73.7 for May, up from 71.8 in April and way higher than the Dow Jones estimate of 65. “The CARES relief checks improved consumers’ finances and widespread price discounting boosted their buying attitudes,” per an economist. According to a new survey from Piper Sandler, about 47% of the respondents say they will head to restaurants as soon as they reopen.
The improved sentiment is reflected in the homebuilding sector asconfidence among U.S. single-family homebuilders rose in May with the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index rising seven points to 37 this month after a record decline in April. Reopening of economies, low rates and CARES Act have probably boosted confidence.
Stimulus Outweighing Earnings Weakness
Corporate earnings are on track for the largest decline since 2009 (per Wall Street Journal), but investors appear less bothered about the decline. Investors’ stocks were badly in mid-March, but from late-March Wall Street gained considerable strength, barring some occasional dips. Investors are shrugging off the virus-led fallout and are showing more optimism on fiscal and monetary stimulus.
Stock Picks
Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few growth stocks that have a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), Growth Score of A, and witnessed positive earnings estimate revision of at least 10% for the upcoming year in the past four weeks.
Chegg Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 provider of a social education platform comes from a favorable Zacks industry (placed at the top 12% of total 250+ industries in the Zacks universe). Earnings estimates went up by 14.40% in the past four weeks.
Nautilus Group Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 maker of cardio and strength equipment for home use hails from a favorable Zacks industry (top 2%). Earnings estimates went up by 81.58% in the past four weeks.
Sprouts Farmers Market Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 company operates in a highly fragmented grocery store industry and belongs to a favorable Zacks industry (top 10%). Earnings estimates went up by 22.5% in the past four weeks.
VeriSign, Inc.
The Zacks Rank #2 provider of Internet infrastructure services comes froma favorable Zacks industry (top 23%). Earnings estimates went up by 27.3% in the past four weeks.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 company is focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule drugs targeting serious diseases. The company’s main area of focus is cystic fibrosis. It hails froma favorable Zacks industry (top 5%). Earnings estimates went up by 15.7% in the past four weeks.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Chegg, Nautilus Group, Sprouts Farmers Market, VeriSign and Vertex Pharmaceuticals
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – May 20, 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: Chegg Inc. (CHGG - Free Report) , Nautilus Group Inc. , Sprouts Farmers Market Inc. (SFM - Free Report) , VeriSign, Inc. (VRSN - Free Report) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
5 Reasons Why Growth Stocks Will Soar Higher
Despite massive job losses and huge corporate earnings weakness, Wall Street has gathered steam lately. A few positive developments on the vaccine front along with unprecedented economic help from the government and the central bank have made this possible.
Reopening of economies is also acting as a huge positive for the markets. We expect growth stocks to gain ahead on a plethora of tailwinds. Below we highlight those in detail.
Fed Still Not Out of Ammunition
The Fed chairman cautioned that the current downturn “may last until late 2021.” He also said that the U.S. economy could "easily" contract by 30% in the second quarter. However, he expressed confidence that the economy would recover over the long term and said he would never bet against the U.S. economy. He does not see the economy entering another Depression, per CNBC.
A super-dovish Fed and a Congress, which have already passed about $3 trillion in rescue funds and are planning another round, would hold the economy back from slipping into Depression. The Fed also indicated that the central bank is not out of ammunition and can expand existing programs or add new ones, if needed. Notably, since March, the Fed cut rates to zero, launched an unlimited QE which included buying of corporate rate and some high-yield bond ETFs too. The Fed also launched a MainStreet Lending program.
U.S. Government’s Massive Stimulus
Congress has already passed about $3 trillion in rescue funds. Small caps were offered a $349 billion forgivable loan program. The loans at issue were being made through the Paycheck Protection Program, which included payments of up to $1,200 to eligible U.S. taxpayers and $500 for each child age 16 or younger. The IRS began sending checks in the middle of April, and by the start of May the agency had made more than 130 million payments.
The U.S. government is also considering The Heroes Act worth $1 trillion. The act intends to provide funds to state, local, territorial and tribal governments who need funds to pay key workers. Funds will also be there for treatments and researches. There could be a second round payments through a $1,200 stimulus check.
Some Positive Medical Developments
Shares of Moderna soared on Monday after it reported positive results from early human tests of its vaccine candidate for the coronavirus. According to the company, the vaccine produced COVID-19 antibodies in all 45 participants. Last week, Novavax's shares skyrocketed after it announced that Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations or CEPI will invest up to $384 million in the development and production of NVX-CoV2373, Novavax's vaccine candidate against coronavirus.
Upbeat Economic Datapoints
The University of Michigan’s U.S. consumer sentiment index came in at 73.7 for May, up from 71.8 in April and way higher than the Dow Jones estimate of 65. “The CARES relief checks improved consumers’ finances and widespread price discounting boosted their buying attitudes,” per an economist. According to a new survey from Piper Sandler, about 47% of the respondents say they will head to restaurants as soon as they reopen.
The improved sentiment is reflected in the homebuilding sector asconfidence among U.S. single-family homebuilders rose in May with the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index rising seven points to 37 this month after a record decline in April. Reopening of economies, low rates and CARES Act have probably boosted confidence.
Stimulus Outweighing Earnings Weakness
Corporate earnings are on track for the largest decline since 2009 (per Wall Street Journal), but investors appear less bothered about the decline. Investors’ stocks were badly in mid-March, but from late-March Wall Street gained considerable strength, barring some occasional dips. Investors are shrugging off the virus-led fallout and are showing more optimism on fiscal and monetary stimulus.
Stock Picks
Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few growth stocks that have a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), Growth Score of A, and witnessed positive earnings estimate revision of at least 10% for the upcoming year in the past four weeks.
Chegg Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 provider of a social education platform comes from a favorable Zacks industry (placed at the top 12% of total 250+ industries in the Zacks universe). Earnings estimates went up by 14.40% in the past four weeks.
Nautilus Group Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 maker of cardio and strength equipment for home use hails from a favorable Zacks industry (top 2%). Earnings estimates went up by 81.58% in the past four weeks.
Sprouts Farmers Market Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 company operates in a highly fragmented grocery store industry and belongs to a favorable Zacks industry (top 10%). Earnings estimates went up by 22.5% in the past four weeks.
VeriSign, Inc.
The Zacks Rank #2 provider of Internet infrastructure services comes froma favorable Zacks industry (top 23%). Earnings estimates went up by 27.3% in the past four weeks.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
The Zacks Rank #1 company is focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule drugs targeting serious diseases. The company’s main area of focus is cystic fibrosis. It hails froma favorable Zacks industry (top 5%). Earnings estimates went up by 15.7% in the past four weeks.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>
Media Contact
Zacks Investment Research
800-767-3771 ext. 9339
support@zacks.com
http://www.zacks.com
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.