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Zacks.com featured highlights include TakeTwo Interactive Software, Delek US Holdings, Ulta Beauty, Altair Engineering and Albemarle

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 5, 2022 – Stocks in this week’s article are TakeTwo Interactive Software (TTWO - Free Report) , Delek US Holdings (DK - Free Report) , Ulta Beauty (ULTA - Free Report) , Altair Engineering (ALTR - Free Report) and Albemarle (ALB - Free Report) .

5 Top-Ranked Stocks Likely to Beat Earnings Estimates

It is not surprising that in an earnings season, every investor looks for stocks that can beat market expectation. This is because investors always try to position themselves ahead of time and look to tap stocks that are high-quality in nature.

Our screener yields winning stocks like TakeTwo Interactive Software, Delek US Holdings, Ulta Beauty, Altair Engineering and Albemarle.

Why Is a Positive Earnings Surprise So Important?

Historically, stocks of companies with solid quarterly earnings (on a nominal basis) tank if they miss or merely meet market expectations. After all, a 20% earnings rise (though apparently looks good) doesn’t tell you if earnings growth has been exhibiting a decelerating trend.

Also, seasonal fluctuations come into play sometimes. If a company’s Q1 is seasonally weak and Q4 strong, then it is likely to report a sequential earnings decline. In such cases, growth rates are misleading while judging the true health of a company.

Meanwhile, after much brainstorming and analysis of companies’ financials and initiatives, Wall Street analysts project earnings of companies. They in fact club their insights and a company’s guidance when deriving an earnings estimate.

Thus, outperforming that estimate is almost equivalent to beating the company’s own expectation as well as the market perception. And if the margin of earnings surprise is big, it typically drives the stock higher right after the release. Thus, more than anything else, an earnings surprise can push a stock higher.

How to Find Stocks That Can Beat?

Now, finding stocks that have the potential to beat on the bottom line may be investors’ dream but not an easy job. One way to do this is to look at the earnings surprise history of the company.

An impressive track in this regard generally acts as a catalyst in sending a stock higher. It indicates the company’s ability to surpass estimates. And investors generally believe that the company will apply the same secret sauce to execute yet another earning beat in its next release.

Here are five out of 14 stocks:

TakeTwo Interactive Software: Take Two Interactive Software is a leading developer and publisher of video games. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The average earnings surprise of TTWO for the past four quarters is 19.04%.

Ulta Beauty: The Zacks Rank #2 company is a leading beauty retailer in the United States.

The average earnings surprise of ULTA for the past four quarters is 49.84%.

Albemarle: The Zacks Rank #2 premier specialty chemicals company has leading positions in attractive end markets globally.

The average earnings surprise of ALB for the past four quarters is 22.50%.

Altair Engineering: Altair Engineering Inc. is focused on the development and broad application of simulation technology to synthesize and optimize designs, processes and decisions for business performance. It has a Zacks Rank #2.

The average earnings surprise of ALTR for the past four quarters is 434.45%.

Delek US Holdings: The Zacks Rank #1 company is an independent refiner, transporter and marketer of petroleum products. The company’s operations are organized into three reportable segments: Refining, Logistics and Retail.

The average earnings surprise of DK for the past four quarters is 172.29%.

You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge.

The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.

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For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks.com at: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/1963558/5-top-ranked-stocks-likely-to-beat-earnings-estimates

Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

About Screen of the Week

Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine.  But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use.

Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News

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