Back to top

Image: Bigstock

These 2 Business Services Stocks Could Beat Earnings: Why They Should Be on Your Radar

Read MoreHide Full Article

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.

Life and the stock market are both about expectations, and rising above what is expected is often rewarded, while falling short can come with negative consequences. Investors might want to try to capture stronger returns by finding positive 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 Expected Surprise Prediction, or ESP, works by locking in on the most up-to-date analyst earnings revisions because they can be more accurate than estimates from weeks or even months before the actual release date. The thinking is pretty straightforward: analysts who provide earnings estimates closer to the report are likely to have more information.

The core of the ESP model is comparing the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, where the resulting percentage difference between the two equals the Expected Surprise Prediction. The Zacks Rank is also factored into the ESP metric to better help find companies that appear poised to top their next bottom-line consensus estimate, which will hopefully help lift the stock price.

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 ranking of #3 (Hold), or 60% of all stocks covered by the Zacks Rank, are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. Stocks with rankings of #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy), 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 Confluent?

The last thing we will do today, now that we have a grasp on the ESP and how powerful of a tool it can be, is to quickly look at a qualifying stock. Confluent (CFLT - Free Report) holds a #3 (Hold) at the moment and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $0.04 a share 26 days away from its upcoming earnings release on May 7, 2024.

Confluent's Earnings ESP sits at +150%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $0.04 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.02. CFLT 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.

CFLT is one of just a large database of Business Services stocks with positive ESPs. Another solid-looking stock is SPX Technologies (SPXC - Free Report) .

SPX Technologies, which is readying to report earnings on May 2, 2024, sits at a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) right now. It's Most Accurate Estimate is currently $1.07 a share, and SPXC is 21 days out from its next earnings report.

SPX Technologies' Earnings ESP figure currently stands at +0.31% after taking the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.07.

CFLT and SPXC'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:


SPX Technologies, Inc. (SPXC) - free report >>

Confluent, Inc. (CFLT) - free report >>

Published in