Month: January 2018

In its weekly release, Houston-based oilfield services player Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE), reported an increase in total rig count in the United States. Details on Rig Count Baker Hughes’ data, issued since 1944 at the end of every week, helps energy service providers gauge the overall business environment of the oil and gas industry. Change in Baker Hughes’ rotary rig count hampers demand for energy services like drilling, completion and production provided by the likes of Halliburton Company HAL , Schlumberger SLB , Weatherford International WFT , Diamond Offshore Drilling DO and Transocean RIG […]

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. HRC reported first-quarter fiscal 2018 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 92 cents, reflecting a 21.7% increase from the year-ago quarter. Adjusted earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 15% and were well above the company’s projected range of 77-79 cents […]

Strong sales growth is one of the most important characteristics of potential winners in the stock market. The companies that put emphasis on sales management have a competitive advantage, as strong sales are generally converted into growth. […]

On Jan 26, we issued an updated research report on Intuitive Surgical, Inc. ISRG . The stock has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). […]

Qualcomm Inc. QCOM is scheduled to release first-quarter fiscal 2018 (ended Sep 30, 2018) results, after the closing bell on Jan 31. The company’s bottom line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the previous four quarters […]

Ally Financial Inc. ALLY is slated to announce fourth-quarter and full-year 2017 results on Jan 30, before market open. Its revenues and earnings for the quarter are projected to grow year over year […]

Pitney Bowes Inc. PBI is slated to release fourth-quarter 2017 results before the opening bell on Jan 31. […]

The government shutdown in the United States guided stocks across Europe and Asia last week. Meanwhile, world leaders continued to deliberate on crucial issues such as trade at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Stocks across Asia also gained direction from the dollar’s plunge. […]

WestRock Company WRK reported first-quarter fiscal 2018 (ended Dec 31, 2017) adjusted earnings of 87 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 75 cents by a margin of 16%. Earnings also surged 85% from the prior year quarter. Including one-time items, the company posted earnings of $4.38 per share in the reported quarter compared to 32 cents per share recorded in the prior-year quarter […]

SVB Financial Group ’s SIVB fourth-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings of $2.89 per share increased 53% year over year. The reported quarter’s figure excluded one-time net costs of $37.6 million related to the tax reform. GAAP earnings including one-time tax charges were $2.19 per share […]

Last week saw Wynn Resorts WYNN and Las Vegas Sands LVS post robust quarterly results. However, Wynn chairman and CEO Steve Wynn stepped down as finance chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC) amid accusations of sexual harassment. Here are the developments in detail- A Mixed Week for Wynn Earnings Beat Wynn Resorts posted strong fourth-quarter 2017 results, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate on both counts. […]

Hilltop Holdings Inc. ’s HTH shares have gained 3.2% following the release of its fourth-quarter and full-year 2017 results. […]

Symantec Corporation SYMC is slated to release its third-quarter fiscal 2018 results on Jan 31. The question lingering on investors’ minds is if this cyber security provider will be able to deliver a positive surprise this time around. Notably, Symantec has a mixed earnings surprise history […]

Most banks that reported fourth-quarter 2017 results last week managed to record bottom-line improvement on top-line strength. This also led to positive price movement for most bank stocks over the last six trading days. In addition to the benefits from higher interest rates, the results mirrored a marginal upswing in loans driven primarily by consumer loans. […]

Tableau Software Inc. DATA is slated to release fourth-quarter 2017 results on Feb 1. […]

Valero Energy Corporation VLO is set to report fourth-quarter 2017 results on Feb 1, before the market opens. Last quarter, the leading refining player delivered a positive earnings surprise of 4.37%, courtesy of higher throughput margin. […]

Amazon AMZN is set to report fourth-quarter 2017 earnings on Feb 1. Continuous investments on expanding fulfilment centers, TV shows and movies, Amazon Web Services (“AWS”), acquisitions, India expansion and second headquarter in North America is expected to keep margins under pressure in the quarter. However, revenues are expected to improve on strong Digital Day’ 17 sales, the integration of Whole Foods, Prime’s expanding customer base, AWS dominant market share and the Fulfillment by Amazon (“FBA”) strategy […]

Apple AAPL is set to report first-quarter fiscal 2018 results on Feb 1. The top line is expected to benefit from robust iPhone X sales during the holiday season along with significant contribution from the rapidly-growing Apple Services segment. Impressive Earnings Trend Apple’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average positive surprise being 6.35% […]