Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Why Investors Need to Take Advantage of These 2 Consumer Discretionary Stocks Now

Read MoreHide Full Article

Two factors often determine stock prices in the long run: earnings and interest rates. Investors can't control the latter, but they can focus on a company's earnings results every quarter.

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.

The ability to identify stocks that are likely to top quarterly earnings expectations can be profitable, but it's no simple task. Here at Zacks, our Earnings ESP filter helps make things easier.

The Zacks Earnings ESP, Explained

The Zacks Earnings ESP, or Expected Surprise Prediction, aims to find earnings surprises by focusing on the most recent analyst revisions. The basic premise is that if an analyst reevaluates their earnings estimate ahead of an earnings release, it means they likely have new information that could possibly be more accurate.

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.

Bringing together a positive earnings ESP alongside a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better has helped stocks report a positive earnings surprise 70% of the time. Furthermore, by using these parameters, investors have seen 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 American Woodmark?

The final step today is to look at a stock that meets our ESP qualifications. American Woodmark (AMWD - Free Report) earns a #3 (Hold) one day from its next quarterly earnings release on November 30, 2023, and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $2.10 a share.

By taking the percentage difference between the $2.10 Most Accurate Estimate and the $1.84 Zacks Consensus Estimate, American Woodmark has an Earnings ESP of +14.3%. Investors should also know that AMWD is one of a large group of stocks with positive ESPs. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

AMWD is one of just a large database of Consumer Discretionary stocks with positive ESPs. Another solid-looking stock is Paramount Global-B (PARA - Free Report) .

Paramount Global-B, which is readying to report earnings on February 15, 2024, sits at a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) right now. It's Most Accurate Estimate is currently $0.03 a share, and PARA is 78 days out from its next earnings report.

For Paramount Global-B, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.02 is +58.95%.

AMWD and PARA's positive ESP metrics may signal that a positive earnings surprise for both stocks is on the horizon.

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 >>


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


American Woodmark Corporation (AMWD) - free report >>

Paramount Global (PARA) - free report >>

Published in