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Here is Why Growth Investors Should Buy Imperial Oil (IMO) Now
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Investors seek growth stocks to capitalize on above-average growth in financials that help these securities grab the market's attention and produce exceptional returns. But finding a great growth stock is not easy at all.
That's because, these stocks usually carry above-average risk and volatility. In fact, betting on a stock for which the growth story is actually over or nearing its end could lead to significant loss.
However, the task of finding cutting-edge growth stocks is made easy with the help of the Zacks Growth Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Scores system), which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company's real growth prospects.
Imperial Oil (IMO - Free Report) is one such stock that our proprietary system currently recommends. The company not only has a favorable Growth Score, but also carries a top Zacks Rank.
Research shows that stocks carrying the best growth features consistently beat the market. And for stocks that have a combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), returns are even better.
While there are numerous reasons why the stock of this oil and gas and petroleum products company is a great growth pick right now, we have highlighted three of the most important factors below:
Earnings Growth
Earnings growth is arguably the most important factor, as stocks exhibiting exceptionally surging profit levels tend to attract the attention of most investors. And for growth investors, double-digit earnings growth is definitely preferable, and often an indication of strong prospects (and stock price gains) for the company under consideration.
While the historical EPS growth rate for Imperial Oil is 9.6%, investors should actually focus on the projected growth. The company's EPS is expected to grow 475.6% this year, crushing the industry average, which calls for EPS growth of 318.2%.
Impressive Asset Utilization Ratio
Asset utilization ratio -- also known as sales-to-total-assets (S/TA) ratio -- is often overlooked by investors, but it is an important indicator in growth investing. This metric shows how efficiently a firm is utilizing its assets to generate sales.
Right now, Imperial Oil has an S/TA ratio of 0.81, which means that the company gets $0.81 in sales for each dollar in assets. Comparing this to the industry average of 0.79, it can be said that the company is more efficient.
In addition to efficiency in generating sales, sales growth plays an important role. And Imperial Oil is well positioned from a sales growth perspective too. The company's sales are expected to grow 80.4% this year versus the industry average of 73.5%.
Promising Earnings Estimate Revisions
Beyond the metrics outlined above, investors should consider the trend in earnings estimate revisions. A positive trend is a plus here. Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
The current-year earnings estimates for Imperial Oil have been revising upward. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 16.7% over the past month.
Bottom Line
While the overall earnings estimate revisions have made Imperial Oil a Zacks Rank #1 stock, it has earned itself a Growth Score of A based on a number of factors, including the ones discussed above.
Image: Bigstock
Here is Why Growth Investors Should Buy Imperial Oil (IMO) Now
Investors seek growth stocks to capitalize on above-average growth in financials that help these securities grab the market's attention and produce exceptional returns. But finding a great growth stock is not easy at all.
That's because, these stocks usually carry above-average risk and volatility. In fact, betting on a stock for which the growth story is actually over or nearing its end could lead to significant loss.
However, the task of finding cutting-edge growth stocks is made easy with the help of the Zacks Growth Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Scores system), which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company's real growth prospects.
Imperial Oil (IMO - Free Report) is one such stock that our proprietary system currently recommends. The company not only has a favorable Growth Score, but also carries a top Zacks Rank.
Research shows that stocks carrying the best growth features consistently beat the market. And for stocks that have a combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), returns are even better.
While there are numerous reasons why the stock of this oil and gas and petroleum products company is a great growth pick right now, we have highlighted three of the most important factors below:
Earnings Growth
Earnings growth is arguably the most important factor, as stocks exhibiting exceptionally surging profit levels tend to attract the attention of most investors. And for growth investors, double-digit earnings growth is definitely preferable, and often an indication of strong prospects (and stock price gains) for the company under consideration.
While the historical EPS growth rate for Imperial Oil is 9.6%, investors should actually focus on the projected growth. The company's EPS is expected to grow 475.6% this year, crushing the industry average, which calls for EPS growth of 318.2%.
Impressive Asset Utilization Ratio
Asset utilization ratio -- also known as sales-to-total-assets (S/TA) ratio -- is often overlooked by investors, but it is an important indicator in growth investing. This metric shows how efficiently a firm is utilizing its assets to generate sales.
Right now, Imperial Oil has an S/TA ratio of 0.81, which means that the company gets $0.81 in sales for each dollar in assets. Comparing this to the industry average of 0.79, it can be said that the company is more efficient.
In addition to efficiency in generating sales, sales growth plays an important role. And Imperial Oil is well positioned from a sales growth perspective too. The company's sales are expected to grow 80.4% this year versus the industry average of 73.5%.
Promising Earnings Estimate Revisions
Beyond the metrics outlined above, investors should consider the trend in earnings estimate revisions. A positive trend is a plus here. Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
The current-year earnings estimates for Imperial Oil have been revising upward. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 16.7% over the past month.
Bottom Line
While the overall earnings estimate revisions have made Imperial Oil a Zacks Rank #1 stock, it has earned itself a Growth Score of A based on a number of factors, including the ones discussed above.
You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
This combination positions Imperial Oil well for outperformance, so growth investors may want to bet on it.