Tuesday, November 2, 2021

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 PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL), Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK), and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT). 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 PayPal have outperformed the Zacks Internet Software industry over the past year (+28.6% vs. +10.9%). The Zacks analyst believes that PayPal’s two-sided platform, safety and simplicity of transactions, opportunities in the fast-growing mobile space and strategic partnerships are some of the major tailwinds.

Venmo’s improving monetization efforts and rising adoption rate across platforms have been supporting total active accounts growth. Solid momentum of core peer to peer and PayPal Checkout experiences is another tailwind. Intensifying competition in the digital payment market and foreign exchange headwinds, however, have been the major concerns for the company.

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

Merck shares have gained 25.1% in the past six months against the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry’s gain of +12.3%. The Zacks analyst believes that company has been benefiting from strong performances of drugs like Keytruda Lynparza.

Keytruda sales have been gaining from the continued uptake in lung cancer treatment as well as increased usage in other cancer indications. Animal health and vaccine products remain core growth drivers. Sales of Merck’s physician-administered drugs and vaccines are recovering from the impact of the pandemic. Generic competition and rising competitive pressure on the diabetes franchise are likely to continue stressing the margins though.

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

Shares of Caterpillar have gained +14.6% in the year to date period against the Zacks Construction and Mining industry’s gain of +16%. The Zacks analyst believes that Caterpillar is likely to gain from improving demand in most of its end markets and cost control efforts.

Strength in residential as well as non-residential construction in the United States, and rising demand in other parts of the world have been driving growth for the Construction Industries segment. Robust mining demand and higher commodity prices is likely to aid the Resource Industries segment.

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

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO), HCA Healthcare, Inc. (HCA) and The TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX).

Sheraz Mian

Director of Research

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>>>