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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: UnitedHealth, Intel, Chevron, Cisco Systems and QUALCOMM

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – June 15, 2020 – 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: UnitedHealth Group (UNH - Free Report) , Intel (INTC - Free Report) , Chevron (CVX - Free Report) , Cisco Systems (CSCO - Free Report) and QUALCOMM (QCOM - Free Report) .

Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:

Top Stock Research Reports for UnitedHealth, Intel and Chevron

The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including UnitedHealth Group, Intel and Chevron. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>

UnitedHealth’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Medical Insurance industry over the past year (+15.8% vs. +6.9%). The Zacks analyst believes that the company has been benefiting from higher segmental contributions, which helped it counter the fallout from the coronavirus-led crunch.

It stands out from the rest in its industry by virtue of healthcare services, technology and innovations offered by its unit, Optum. Its numerous acquisitions bolstered its inorganic growth profile. Its revenues should continue to grow, driven by a strong market position and an attractive core business.

Its solid balance sheet and consistent cash flow generation encourage investment in business.  By retaining its 2020 earnings guidance, the company restores investor confidence. However, the company is witnessing a slowdown in its international operations. Commercial membership may also suffer due to increased joblessness.

Shares of Intel have gained +3.3% over the past six months against the Zacks General Semiconductor industry’s rise of +16.1%. The Zacks analyst believes that Intel is benefiting from momentum across both PC-centric and Data-centric domains.

Robust mix of high-performance second-generation Xeon Scalable processors and solid demand from Cloud service providers are expected to drive near-term growth. Moreover, the company is making advancements in the IoT space, courtesy of product introductions and tie ups. Additionally, Intel is witnessing strong momentum for its first 10-nanometer (nm) mobile CPU.

Notably, the company has not provided 2020 guidance citing coronavirus crisis-induced business uncertainty. Also, declining PC total addressable market, higher expenses pertaining to 10-nm ramp up and constrained supply amid coronavirus outbreak remain concerns.

Chevron’s shares have gained +7.1% over the past three months against the Zacks Integrated Oil industry’s rise of +12.5%. The Zacks analyst believes that Chevron’s well economics in the play continues to improve as the company has been able to achieve a 40% reduction in its development and production costs since 2015.

The company's worldwide production averaged a record 3,058 MBOE/d in 2019, reflecting an increase of 4.4% thanks to expansion in the lucrative Permian Basin. However, Chevron is not immune to this historic oil price crash, forcing it to cut capex and suspend buybacks. The company’s high oil price sensitivity is a concern too.

Moreover, the supermajor’s reserve replacement ratio of 44% is indicative its inability to add proved reserves to its reserve base to the amount of oil and gas produced.  

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Cisco Systems and QUALCOMM.

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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 http://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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