Wall Street watches a company's quarterly report closely to understand as much as possible about its recent performance and what to expect going forward. Of course, one figure often stands out among the rest: earnings.

The earnings figure itself is key, of course, but a beat or miss on the bottom line can sometimes be just as, if not more, important. Therefore, investors should consider paying close attention to these earnings surprises, as a big beat can help a stock climb and vice versa.

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.

When we join a positive earnings ESP with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or stronger, stocks posted a positive bottom-line surprise 70% of the time. Plus, this system saw investors produce roughly 28% 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 BJ's Wholesale Club?

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. BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ Quick QuoteBJ - Free Report) holds a #3 (Hold) at the moment and its Most Accurate Estimate comes in at $0.93 a share 15 days away from its upcoming earnings release on May 22, 2025.

BJ's Wholesale Club's Earnings ESP sits at +1.97%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $0.93 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.91. BJ 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.

BJ is just one of a large group of Consumer Staples stocks with a positive ESP figure. BellRing Brands (BRBR Quick QuoteBRBR - Free Report) is another qualifying stock you may want to consider.

BellRing Brands, which is readying to report earnings on August 4, 2025, sits at a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) right now. It's Most Accurate Estimate is currently $0.58 a share, and BRBR is 89 days out from its next earnings report.

BellRing Brands' Earnings ESP figure currently stands at +1.6% after taking the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.57.

BJ and BRBR'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 >>