Wednesday, March 22, 2023

The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN), Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO) and QUALCOMM Incorporated (QCOM). These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>

Shares of Amazon.com lagged the broader market (-38.7% vs. -11.2% for the S&P 500) and the Zacks Tech sector (-14%) over the past year, reflecting fears of an extended period of post-Covid retrenchment in the company's capacity both in the retail as well as cloud businesses.  Further, softness in online shopping activities remains a negative for its online stores.

These near-term challenges notwithstanding, Amazon's AWS business remains well positioned for the eventual recovery in business cloud spending. Ultrafast delivery services and expanding content portfolio effectively guarantee that Amazon hangs onto its market share in this period of weakness. Strengthening relationship with third-party sellers was a positive. Robust advertising business contributed well.

Improving Alexa skills along with robust smart home products offerings were tailwinds. Amazon’s strong global presence and solid momentum among the small and medium businesses remain positives.

(You can read the full research report on Amazon.com here >>>)

Novo Nordisk shares have outperformed the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry over the past year (+34.7% vs. +2.9%). The company has one of the broadest diabetes portfolios in the industry. Ozempic and Rybelsus have been performing well in the market. Drug sales have been gaining and maintaining momentum.

Label expansion of the existing drugs is likely to further boost sales. Ozempic is off to a solid start since its launch and will drive growth for the company. The launch of Rybelsus also looks impressive.

The supply issues with Wegovy have been resolved. The company has been diversifying its efforts to develop new treatments, which is encouraging. The patent expiry on some of the products in Novo Nordisk’s portfolio remains a woe.

(You can read the full research report on Novo Nordisk here >>>)

QUALCOMM shares have underperformed the Zacks Wireless Equipment industry over the past year (-19.0% vs. -15.5%). The company has offered a muted outlook for the second quarter due to rapid deterioration in demand and high channel inventory amid a challenging macroeconomic environment and business uncertainty.

QUALCOMM company expects softness in the handset market and weaker overall mix of devices. High research and development costs are also expected to dent margins. However, Qualcomm is well-positioned to benefit from solid 5G traction with greater visibility and a diversified revenue stream. The buyout of Veoneer is likely to further augment its automotive business.

It is focusing on the seamless transition from a wireless communications firm for the mobile industry to a connected processor company for the intelligent edge. It is also witnessing healthy traction in EDGE networking that helps to transform connectivity across diverse IoT devices.

(You can read the full research report on QUALCOMM here >>>)

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG), American Tower Corporation (AMT) and Chubb Limited (CB).

Director of Research

Sheraz Mian

Note: Sheraz Mian heads the Zacks Equity Research department and is a well-regarded expert of aggregate earnings. He is frequently quoted in the print and electronic media and publishes the weekly Earnings Trends and Earnings Preview reports. If you want an email notification each time Sheraz publishes a new article, please click here>>>