Quarterly financial reports play a vital role on Wall Street, as they help investors see how a company has performed and what might be coming down the road in the near-term. And out of all of the metrics and results to consider, earnings is one of the most important.

We know earnings results are vital, but how a company performs compared to bottom line expectations can be even more important when it comes to stock prices, especially in the near-term. This means that investors might want to take advantage of these earnings surprises.

Hunting for 'earnings whispers' or companies poised to beat their quarterly earnings estimates is a somewhat common practice. But that doesn't make it easy. One way that has been proven to work is by using the Zacks Earnings ESP tool.

The Zacks Earnings ESP, Explained

The Zacks Earnings ESP is more formally known as the Expected Surprise Prediction, and it aims to grab the inside track on the latest analyst estimate revisions ahead of a company's report. The idea is relatively intuitive as a newer projection might be based on more complete information.

Now that we understand the basic idea, let's look at how the Expected Surprise Prediction works. The ESP is calculated by comparing the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, with the percentage difference between the two giving us the Zacks ESP figure.

In fact, when we combined a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better and a positive Earnings ESP, stocks produced a positive surprise 70% of the time. Perhaps most importantly, using these parameters has helped produce 28.3% annual returns on average, according to our 10 year backtest.

Stocks with a #3 (Hold) ranking, which is most stocks covered at 60%, are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. But stocks that fall into the #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy) ranking, or the top 15% and top 5% of stocks, respectively, should outperform the market. Strong Buy stocks should outperform more than any other rank.

Should You Consider Block?

Now that we understand what the ESP is and how beneficial it can be, let's dive into a stock that currently fits the bill. Block (SQ Quick QuoteSQ - Free Report) earns a #3 (Hold) right now and its Most Accurate Estimate sits at $0.32 a share, just 24 days from its upcoming earnings release on February 23, 2023.

Block's Earnings ESP sits at +8.61%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $0.32 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.29. SQ is also part of a large group of stocks that boast a positive ESP. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

SQ is one of just a large database of Business Services stocks with positive ESPs. Another solid-looking stock is Gartner (IT Quick QuoteIT - Free Report) .

Slated to report earnings on February 7, 2023, Gartner holds a #3 (Hold) ranking on the Zacks Rank, and it's Most Accurate Estimate is $2.58 a share eight days from its next quarterly update.

For Gartner, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.57 is +0.52%.

SQ and IT's positive ESP figures tell us that both stocks have a good chance at beating analyst expectations in their next earnings report.

Find Stocks to Buy or Sell Before They're Reported

Use the Zacks Earnings ESP Filter to turn up stocks with the highest probability of positively, or negatively, surprising to buy or sell before they're reported for profitable earnings season trading. Check it out here >>