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.

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.

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.

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.

In fact, when we combined a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better and a positive Earnings ESP, stocks produced a positive surprise 70% of the time. Perhaps most importantly, using these parameters has helped produce 28.3% annual returns on average, according to our 10 year backtest.

Most stocks, about 60%, fall into the #3 (Hold) category, and they are expected to perform in-line with the broader market. Stocks with a #2 (Buy) and #1 (Strong Buy) rating, or the top 15% and top 5% of stocks, respectively, should outperform the market, with Strong Buy stocks outperforming more than any other rank.

Should You Consider Cracker Barrel Old Country Store?

Now that we understand what the ESP is and how beneficial it can be, let's dive into a stock that currently fits the bill. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (CBRL Quick QuoteCBRL - Free Report) earns a #3 (Hold) right now and its Most Accurate Estimate sits at $0.18 a share, just 15 days from its upcoming earnings release on March 5, 2026.

By taking the percentage difference between the $0.18 Most Accurate Estimate and the -$0.1 Zacks Consensus Estimate, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has an Earnings ESP of +275.61%. Investors should also know that CBRL 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.

CBRL is part of a big group of Retail and Wholesale stocks that boast a positive ESP, and investors may want to take a look at Murphy USA (MUSA Quick QuoteMUSA - Free Report) as well.

Murphy USA, which is readying to report earnings on May 6, 2026, sits at a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) right now. Its Most Accurate Estimate is currently $2.90 a share, and MUSA is 77 days out from its next earnings report.

Murphy USA's Earnings ESP figure currently stands at +1.05% after taking the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.87.

Because both stocks hold a positive Earnings ESP, CBRL and MUSA could potentially post earnings beats in their next reports.

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 >>