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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Merck, Philip Morris, Qualcomm, CVS Health and Chubb
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For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – August 24, 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: Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK - Free Report) , Philip Morris International Inc. (PM - Free Report) , Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM - Free Report) , CVS Health Corporation (CVS - Free Report) and Chubb Limited (CB - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:
Top Stock Reports from Merck, Philip Morris and Qualcomm
The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Merck & Co., Inc., Philip Morris International Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.
Shares of Merck have gained +22.5% over the past year against the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry’s gain of +24.1%. The company beat Q2 estimates for earnings and sales. Products like Keytruda and Gardasil have been driving sales. With continued label expansion into new indications, particularly earlier-line launches, Keytruda is expected to remain a key top-line driver.
Animal health and vaccine products are core growth drivers. Merck boasts a strong cancer pipeline, including Keytruda, which should drive long-term growth. Merck is investing in M&A activity to strengthen its pipeline.
However, generic competition for several drugs and rising competitive pressure, mainly on the diabetes franchise, will continue to be overhangs on the top line. There are concerns about Merck’s ability to grow its non-oncology business ahead of Keytruda’s loss of exclusivity later in the decade.
Philip Morris shares have outperformed the Zacks Tobacco industry over the past year (+1.6% vs. -1.2%). The company has been benefiting from its solid pricing power. Higher pricing variance was an upside to the company’s performance in the second quarter of 2023 and is likely to remain a driver.
A focus on reduced-risk products, especially IQOS, has been working well for the company, which is witnessing a continued product mix shift from cigarettes to smoke-free products. These upsides are likely to boost organic revenues in the full-year 2023.
However, Philip Morris has been battling cost-related headwinds. The company expects to make additional growth-oriented investments in 2023, which may impact margins. Also, soft cigarette shipment volumes and volatile currency movements have been concerns. In full-year 2023, cigarette shipment volumes are expected to decline by 1.5-2.5%.
Shares of Qualcomm have outperformed the Zacks Wireless Equipment industry over the year-to-date period (+0.9% vs. -5.3%). The company is focusing on a seamless transition from a wireless communications firm for the mobile industry to a connected processor firm for the intelligent edge. Strength in the snapdragon portfolio is an additional tailwind.
Qualcomm is well-positioned to benefit from solid 5G traction, greater visibility and a diversified revenue stream. Qualcomm is also witnessing solid momentum in IoT across consumer, edge networking and industrial sectors.
However, owing to a challenging macroeconomic environment, inflationary pressures and soft recovery in China, resulting in lower-than-expected demand and elevated inventory levels. Weakness in the smartphone industry and cautious client approach are weighing on margins. Rising geopolitical volatility and high debt burden remain headwinds.
Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include CVS Health Corporation and Chubb Limited.
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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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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Merck, Philip Morris, Qualcomm, CVS Health and Chubb
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – August 24, 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: Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK - Free Report) , Philip Morris International Inc. (PM - Free Report) , Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM - Free Report) , CVS Health Corporation (CVS - Free Report) and Chubb Limited (CB - Free Report) .
Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:
Top Stock Reports from Merck, Philip Morris and Qualcomm
The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Merck & Co., Inc., Philip Morris International Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.
You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>
Shares of Merck have gained +22.5% over the past year against the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry’s gain of +24.1%. The company beat Q2 estimates for earnings and sales. Products like Keytruda and Gardasil have been driving sales. With continued label expansion into new indications, particularly earlier-line launches, Keytruda is expected to remain a key top-line driver.
Animal health and vaccine products are core growth drivers. Merck boasts a strong cancer pipeline, including Keytruda, which should drive long-term growth. Merck is investing in M&A activity to strengthen its pipeline.
However, generic competition for several drugs and rising competitive pressure, mainly on the diabetes franchise, will continue to be overhangs on the top line. There are concerns about Merck’s ability to grow its non-oncology business ahead of Keytruda’s loss of exclusivity later in the decade.
(You can read the full research report on Merck here >>>)
Philip Morris shares have outperformed the Zacks Tobacco industry over the past year (+1.6% vs. -1.2%). The company has been benefiting from its solid pricing power. Higher pricing variance was an upside to the company’s performance in the second quarter of 2023 and is likely to remain a driver.
A focus on reduced-risk products, especially IQOS, has been working well for the company, which is witnessing a continued product mix shift from cigarettes to smoke-free products. These upsides are likely to boost organic revenues in the full-year 2023.
However, Philip Morris has been battling cost-related headwinds. The company expects to make additional growth-oriented investments in 2023, which may impact margins. Also, soft cigarette shipment volumes and volatile currency movements have been concerns. In full-year 2023, cigarette shipment volumes are expected to decline by 1.5-2.5%.
(You can read the full research report on Philip Morris here >>>)
Shares of Qualcomm have outperformed the Zacks Wireless Equipment industry over the year-to-date period (+0.9% vs. -5.3%). The company is focusing on a seamless transition from a wireless communications firm for the mobile industry to a connected processor firm for the intelligent edge. Strength in the snapdragon portfolio is an additional tailwind.
Qualcomm is well-positioned to benefit from solid 5G traction, greater visibility and a diversified revenue stream. Qualcomm is also witnessing solid momentum in IoT across consumer, edge networking and industrial sectors.
However, owing to a challenging macroeconomic environment, inflationary pressures and soft recovery in China, resulting in lower-than-expected demand and elevated inventory levels. Weakness in the smartphone industry and cautious client approach are weighing on margins. Rising geopolitical volatility and high debt burden remain headwinds.
(You can read the full research report on QUALCOMM here >>>)
Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include CVS Health Corporation and Chubb Limited.
Free Report: Top EV Battery Stocks to Buy Now
Just-released report reveals 5 stocks to profit as millions of EV batteries are made. Elon Musk tweeted that lithium prices have gone to "insane levels," and they're likely to keep climbing. As a result, a handful of lithium battery stocks are set to skyrocket. Access this report to discover which battery stocks to buy and which to avoid.
Download free today.
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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.