Assurant (AIZ) Q1 Earnings: Disappointment in the Cards?

MCO AIZ AFG AER

Assurant, Inc. (AIZ - Free Report) is slated to report first-quarter 2017 results on May 2, after the market closes. Last quarter, the company had a positive earnings surprise of 15.00%. Let’s see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Factors to be Considered this Quarter

Assurant is likely to report a decline in net operating income in the to-be-reported quarter owing to the ongoing normalization of lender-placed insurance in Global Housing as well as lower contributions from legacy businesses.

Moreover, the Multi line insurer is expected to record lower net earned premiums and net operating income in the first quarter. However, growth in multi-family housing and mortgage solutions as well as expense-saving initiatives might partially offset the downside.

Further, the company might have experienced lower premiums earned in the quarter, which is likely to have weighed on revenue improvement.

However, the company’s Global Lifestyle business is likely to have displayed growth due to improved performance in mobile business.

Also, Assurant’s fee-based capital-light businesses are expected to display growth in the to-be-reported quarter.

With respect to surprise trend, the company delivered positive surprises in three of the last four quarters with an average beat of 5.09%.

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model does not conclusively show that Assurant is likely to beat on earnings this quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.

Zacks ESP: Assurant has an Earnings ESP of -1.33%. This is because the Most Accurate estimate is pegged at $1.49, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate stands at $1.51. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Assurant carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Please note that we caution against Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies from the finance sector that you may want to consider as these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:

American Financial Group, Inc. (AFG - Free Report) , which is set to report first-quarter earnings on May 3, has an Earnings ESP of +0.73% and a Zacks Rank #3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Moody’s Corporation (MCO - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +7.38% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is set to report first-quarter earnings on May 5.

AerCap Holdings N.V. (AER - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +2.13% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company is slated to report first-quarter earnings on May 9.

Sell These Stocks.Now.

Just released, today's 220 Zacks Rank #5 Strong Sells demand urgent attention. If any are lurking in your portfolio or Watch List, they should be removed immediately. These are sinister companies because many appear to be sound investments. However, from 1988 through 2016, stocks from our Strong Sell list have actually performed 6X worse than the S&P 500. See today's Zacks "Strong Sells" absolutely free >>

Zacks Names "Single Best Pick to Double"

From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.

It’s a little-known chemical company that’s up 65% over last year, yet still dirt cheap. With unrelenting demand, soaring 2022 earnings estimates, and $1.5 billion for repurchasing shares, retail investors could jump in at any time.

This company could rival or surpass other recent Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Boston Beer Company which shot up +143.0% in little more than 9 months and NVIDIA which boomed +175.9% in one year.

Free: See Our Top Stock and 4 Runners Up >>