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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Agnico Eagle Mines, Abercrombie & Fitch, Amazon.com, Alphabet and Hess

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – May 14, 2024 – 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: Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. (AEM - Free Report) , Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF - Free Report) , Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN - Free Report) , Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL - Free Report) and Hess Corp. (HES - Free Report) .

Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:

Why “Sell in May?” Instead, Buy These 5 Growth Stocks Now

Wall Street’s age-old adage “sell in May and go away” highlights that the summer months between May and October is the worst period for investors to put money in the stock market. Especially after an outstanding winter, it’s hard to digest that there won't be any profit-taking in the weaker summer months.

But astute investors shouldn’t completely unload stocks because of seasonal trends. This is because 2024 is a presidential election year, and stocks tend to perform better in the months leading up to the election compared to non-election years. By the way, the stock market has already defied the sell-in-May trend, with all the major indexes trading in the positive territory for the month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average scaled upward for the eighth successive trading session on May 10 and registered its best week since December. The 30-stock index posted a fourth consecutive winning week and is now tantalizingly close to the coveted 40,000 mark. The broader S&P 500 and the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite also recorded their third positive week (read more: Dow's 40,000 on the Way: 3 Blue Chip Stocks to Buy Now).

The stock market, in reality, is well-poised to gain traction as the Federal Reserve has ruled out any interest rate hike in the upcoming policy meetings. To top it, despite sticky inflation, the cooling of the labor market raised hopes of interest rate cuts soon. New job additions were the lowest in April since November and the unemployment rate is hovering near the 4% mark. Wage growth, on the other hand, declined to its lowest level in April in three years.

Thus, consumers’ intent to spend will decline amid fewer jobs and weaker wage growth, which should curb price pressures. The Fed, in turn, will be compelled to trim interest rates. This will lead to a decline in the cost of borrowing and boost consumer outlays.

Hence, with the economy well-positioned to chug along and the stock market set to defy discouraging seasonal factors, astute investors should place bets on fundamentally sound growth stocks such as Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Amazon.com, Inc., Alphabet Inc. and Hess Corp. for solid returns.

These stocks carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and 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.

Agnico Eagle Mines is a gold producer having exploration activities in Canada, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Agnico Eagle Mines presently has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 39.7% over the past 60 days. AEM’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 42.2%.

Abercrombie & Fitch operates as a specialty retailer of premium, high-quality casual apparel for men, women and kids. Abercrombie & Fitch currently has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 3.2% over the past 60 days. ANF’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 20.1%.

Amazonis one of the largest e-commerce providers. Amazon currently has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 11.8% over the past 60 days. AMZN’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 56.6%.

Alphabet is one of the most innovative companies in the modern technological age. Alphabet presently has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 11.8% over the past 60 days. GOOGL’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 30.5% (read more: Bill Ackman's Favorite "Magnificent 7" Stock is a Big Winner).

Hess is a leading oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Hess currently has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved up 25.3% over the past 60 days. HES’ expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 81.6%.

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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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