Friday, March 15, 2024

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 Microsoft Corporation (MSFT), The Coca-Cola Company (KO) and Accenture plc (ACN). 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 >>>

Microsoft has modestly outperformed the Zacks Tech sector over the past year (+55.9% vs. +51.3%) and done far better than the broader market over the same time period (+55.9% vs. +32.4% for the S&P 500 index). The company’s last quarterly results benefited from strong Intelligent Cloud and Productivity and Business Processes revenues. Productivity and Business Processes revenues rose due to a strong adoption of Office 365 Commercial solutions.

Microsoft 365 Consumer subscribers grew to 78.4 million. Continued momentum in the small and medium businesses, frontline worker offerings and a gain in revenue per user drove the top line. Intelligent Cloud revenues were driven by growth in Azure and other cloud services. Solid adoption of Azure AI, which now has a clientele of more than 53,000 customers holds promise.

However, Office's declining commercial licensing has been a headwind due to the continued customer shift to cloud offerings. Higher operating expenses and spend on Azure enhancements amid stiff competition in the cloud space remains a concern.

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

Shares of Coca-Cola have gained +3.5% over the past year against the Zacks Beverages - Soft drinks industry’s gain of +7.9%. The company continues to witness positive business trends as reflected by its robust surprise history. KO’s sales and earnings beat estimates for the third consecutive quarter in third-quarter 2023.

Earnings and sales also improved year over year. Strong revenue growth across most of its operating segments aided by improved price/mix and increased concentrate sales boosted the results. It is poised to gain from innovations and accelerating digital investments. It provided an upbeat guidance for 2023.

However, shares of Coca-Cola lagged the industry in the past year. KO continues witness inflationary cost pressures, related to higher commodity and material costs, as well as higher marketing investments.

(You can read the full research report on Coca-Cola here >>>)

Accenture shares have outperformed the Zacks Consulting Services industry over the past year (+51.8% vs. +48.1%). Technological prowess, contribution from acquisitions, strong growth prospects and dividend payouts make the shares attractive.

The company continues to witness strong demand for application modernization and maintenance, cloud enablement and cybersecurity-as-a-service. These trends are boosting its managed services business across the world. A disciplined acquisition strategy helps Accenture to channelize business in high-growth areas.

On the flip side, pricing pressure due to significant competition from strong companies like Genpact, Cognizant and Infosys, remains a concern. Global presence exposes the company to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations.

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

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT), Pfizer Inc. (PFE) and TotalEnergies SE (TTE).

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>>>