Alphatec (ATEC Quick QuoteATEC - Free Report) shares ended the last trading session 11.4% higher at $17.38. The jump came on an impressive volume with a higher-than-average number of shares changing hands in the session. This compares to the stock's 3.6% loss over the past four weeks.

Alphatec recorded a solid price appreciation on the back of strong preliminary first-quarter 2021 revenue results. The company’s first-quarter 2021 U.S. revenues are projected to see growth of about 50% from the prior-year quarter's reported figure. Moreover, the company predicts 2021 revenue growth to be above 30%. Market is also upbeat about Alphatec's plan to lease a 75,000 square foot facility in Memphis, TN, which will serve as a hub of primary distribution operations of its commercially-launched products.

Price and Consensus

This medical equipment and supplies holding company is expected to post quarterly loss of $0.19 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -5.6%. Revenues are expected to be $39.94 million, up 32.6% from the year-ago quarter.

Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.

For Alphatec, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. And a stock's price usually doesn't keep moving higher in the absence of any trend in earnings estimate revisions. So, make sure to keep an eye on ATEC going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>