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Select Bancorp (SLCT) Moves 5.6% Higher: Will This Strength Last?

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Select Bancorp shares soared 5.6% in the last trading session to close at $12.59. The move was backed by solid volume with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session. This compares to the stock's 7.1% gain over the past four weeks.

Select Bancorp extended its rally for the second consequent day and touched a new 52-week high of $12.71 in the second half of the trading session. Optimistic investor sentiments surrounding the expectation of an accelerated recovery of the banking sector drove the stock. The bullish trend can be attributed to steepening of the yield curve, additional government spending and favorable economic data.

Price and Consensus

Price Consensus Chart for SLCT

This bank holding company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.25 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +525%. Revenues are expected to be $16.62 million, up 25.2% from the year-ago quarter.

While earnings and revenue growth expectations are important in evaluating the potential strength in a stock, empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

For Select Bancorp, 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 SLCT going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>

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