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Zacks.com featured highlights: CRA International, Estee Lauder, Dana, Boeing and Rogers

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 23, 2017 - Stocks in this week’s article include CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ: (CRAI - Free Report)  – Free Report), Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: (EL - Free Report)  – Free Report), Dana Incorporated (NYSE: (DAN - Free Report)  – Free Report), Boeing Company (NYSE: (BA - Free Report)  – Free Report), Rogers Corporation (NYSE: (ROG - Free Report)  – Free Report).

Screen of the Week of Zacks Investment Research:

Invest in These 5 Momentum Stocks Using Driehaus Strategy

Investors with a strong risk appetite usually target momentum stocks for attractive returns. In this context, Driehaus Strategy could be used, which Richard Driehaus formulated using the "buy high and sell higher" principle. The success of this investing strategy earned Driehaus a place in Barron’s All-Century Team.

The American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) proved that the strategy has the potential to offer high returns. AAII’s portfolio, which was developed following the strategy, returned 13.5% and 18.1% in the five- and 10-year time frames, respectively, compared with -1.1% and 4.2% returns registered by the S&P 500. Thus investors with a high risk appetite may opt for this strategy to boost their portfolio returns.

A Detailed Look into the Driehaus Strategy

Regarding the strategy, Driehaus once said: “I would much rather invest in a stock that’s increasing in price and take the risk that it may begin to decline than invest in a stock that’s already in a decline and try to guess when it will turn around.” In line with this insight, AAII took into account the percentage 50-day moving average as one of the key criteria before creating a portfolio following Driehaus’ philosophy.

It is calculated by dividing the numerator (month-end price minus 50-day moving average of month-end price) by the 50-day moving average of the month-end price. Another momentum indicator – positive relative strength – has also been included in this strategy. A positive percentage 50-day moving average indicates that the stock is trading at a price higher than its 50-day moving average level, indicating an uptrend.

Moreover, AAII found that Driehaus primarily focuses on strong earnings growth rates and impressive earnings projections to pick potential outperformers. Companies with a strong history of beating estimates are also given importance in this strategy, which was made to provide better returns over the long term.

Screening Parameters

In order to make the strategy more profitable, we have considered only those stocks that have a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and a Momentum Score of A or B. Our research shows that stocks with a Style Score of A or B when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 offer the best upside potential.

• Zacks Rank equal to #1

(Only Strong Buy rated stocks can get through. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.)

Last 5-year average EPS growth rates above 2%

(Strong EPS growth history ensures improving business)

Trailing 12 month EPS growth higher than 0 and industry median

(Higher EPS growth compared to the industry average indicates superior stocks)

Last four-quarter average EPS surprise greater than 5%

(Positive EPS surprise indicates potential)

Positive % 50-day moving average and relative strength over 4 weeks

(High % 50-day moving average and relative strength signal uptrend)

Momentum Score equal to or less than B

(Favorable momentum score indicates that it is ideal to take advantage of the momentum with the highest probability of success)

These few parameters have narrowed down the universe of over 7,870 stocks to only 23.

Here are five of the 23 stocks:

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRAIFree Report) is a consulting company. CRA International has a Momentum Score of A and an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 5.3%.

Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: ELFree Report) is a manufacturer and marketer of skin care, makeup and hair care products globally. Estee Lauder has a Momentum Score of A and an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 13.7%.

Dana Incorporated (NYSE: DANFree Report) is a manufacturer and seller of driveline, sealing and thermal-management products for vehicle manufacturers. Dana has a Momentum Score of B and an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 41.1%.

Boeing Company (NYSE: BAFree Report) is a developer, manufacturer and seller of commercial jetliners, military aircraft and launch systems and services globally. Boeing has a Momentum Score of B and an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 13.7%.

Rogers Corporation (NYSE: ROGFree Report) is a developer, manufacturer and seller of engineered materials and components globally. Rogers has a Momentum Score of A and an average four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 23.2%.

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Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance.

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Sign up now for your free trial today and start picking better stocks immediately. And with the backtesting feature, you can test your ideas to see how you can improve your trading in both up markets and down markets. Don’t wait for the market to get better before you decide to do better. Start learning how to be a better trader today: https://at.zacks.com/?id=111

Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

About Screen of the Week

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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/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.