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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights AMN Healthcare Services, Clarivate, Core & Main, CRH and Deere & Co.

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – January 17, 2023 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: AMN Healthcare Services (AMN - Free Report) , Clarivate (CLVT - Free Report) , Core & Main (CNM - Free Report) , CRH (CRH - Free Report) and Deere & Co. (DE - Free Report) .

Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:

Wall Street Books Best Week Since November: 5 Growth Picks

The three major benchmarks opened lower on Jan 13 but, in due course, bounced back and finished the trading session in the green. The Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq notched their best weekly percentage gains in two months.

For the week, the tech-laden Nasdaq was the outperformer, surging 4.8%. The 30-stock Dow and the broader S&P 500 also advanced 2% and 2.7%, respectively, for the week. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500, too, booked their second successive positive week.

An encouraging reading on consumer sentiment in the United States lifted investors' sentiment. The University of Michigan's preliminary report showed that its consumer sentiment index increased to 64.6 in January from 59.7 in the prior month, its highest level since April. Moreover, the reading was more than analysts' expectations of an increase to 60.7.

At the same time, the University of Michigan's index that measures present economic conditions increased sharply to 68.6 this month from 59.4 in December. In reality, consumers' assessment of economic conditions improved mostly due to easing inflation. Lest we forget, consumer sentiment had tanked for most of last year as inflation spiked to a record high and weighed on real income, impacting household's living standards.

Nonetheless, consumer-price growth eased in December for the sixth straight month. The consumer price index (CPI) advanced 6.5% on a year-over-year basis last month, less than November's annual increase of 7.1%, and well below June's peak of 9.1%, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Now, with inflation easing, market participants assume that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year. The central bank, at present, is widely expected to hike interest rates by only a quarter of a percentage point in the February meeting. But that's down from a 50 basis points increase in December, which followed a 75-basis points rate hike four times in a row.

Again, a less aggressive Fed bodes well for the stock market. This is because rate hikes last year had impacted market returns since they increased borrowing costs and curbed consumer outlays. Thus, with consumer sentiments improving amid falling inflation and fewer rate hike expectations, the stock market is surely poised to give better returns this year than last year.

Hence, investors should place their bets on growth stocks. We have, therefore, highlighted five stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy), and have a Growth Score of A or B, a combination that offers the best opportunities in the growth investing space. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.

AMN Healthcare Services is a travel healthcare staffing company. AMN has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 1.1% over the past 60 days. The company's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is nearly 44%.

Clarivate operates as an information services and analytics company. CLVT has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 1.3% over the past 60 days. The company's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 12.5%.

Core & Main is a specialized distributor of water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection products, and related services. CNM has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of A.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 10.8% over the past 60 days. The company's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 159%.

CRH manufactures cement, concrete products, aggregates, roofing, insulation, and other building materials. CRH has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 13.5% over the past 60 days. The company's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 19%.

Deere & Co. is the world's largest producer of agricultural equipment, manufacturing agricultural machinery since 1837 under the iconic John Deere brand with its signature green and yellow color scheme. DE has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 4.8% over the past 60 days. The company's expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 19.6%.

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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