| Secret 2: Stop the Bleeding This second secret is simple, yet hard for most investors to do. So, I'm going to repeat it again and again...until I wear out the words! Sell All Companies with a Negative Earnings Surprise! Yes. Immediately. Do Not Pass Go. Do Not Collect $200. Sell! Even after it falls at the open. Even if it is for a substantial loss. Why? Better to take a 5-10% loss in the short run than a 20 to 40% loss in the long run. Keep in mind how earnings estimates are created. Both company executives and brokerage analysts do their best to create conservative estimates that the company should easily beat. It's all about lowering the bar. So when a company falls short of those watered-down estimates it points to one of two serious problems: | • | Industry conditions have deteriorated and thus they missed their forecasts. This problem most likely will not correct itself in the near-term, leading to further disappointment. | | • | Management is incompetent. Meaning that they are clueless when it comes to estimating their own earnings. Or growth strategies are simply ineffective. | Either reason is enough cause to abandon the stock immediately and move on to greener pastures. Secret 3: Harness Real "Earnings Whispers" Consider the following chain of logic: | • | Wall Street analysts create earnings estimates. | | • | These analysts are highly motivated to create conservative estimates that can easily be beat. Why? If they have a Buy rating on a stock, and the estimates are too high, then the stock is more likely to disappoint. This would send the stock price lower and the performance on their stock ratings would be poor (leading to lower compensation for the analysts). | | • | The closer to earnings season we get, the more accurate the information the analyst has at their disposal to put into the estimate since there is less time left to estimate performance. | Add it all up and no analyst would increase estimates close to the date of the earnings report unless there was a DARN GOOD REASON. Focusing on those estimates closest to the earnings announcement is where we've found the "whisper that becomes a scream." ...a clear indication from the analyst community of stocks more likely to beat earnings by a wide margin. And most importantly, rise on that news. The Easy Way to Apply These Secrets The research team at Zacks has created a special strategy that uses additional filters to detect an elite crop of companies that | • | have a high probability of beating earnings (our signals have been correct a remarkable 80.93% of the time) | | • | are likely to jump significantly in price. | This is critically important because hundreds of stocks are likely to achieve positive surprises - but most investors can't buy all of them. This special strategy drives the portfolio I manage called Zacks Surprise Trader. I can't share all the details of the secret formula with you, but our system relies on two under-utilized signals coming from the brokerage analyst community. These two whispers are then layered on top of other time-tested elements such as the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank to find only the best stocks... in the best industries... with the best chances of beating earnings and quickly rising in price. The formula has turned up some great winners recently, including closed gains of +114.4%, +77.9%, +62.5%, +36.6%, and +22.5% in as little as 6 days.¹ If you would like to receive precise whisper trading signals like these through the heart of this earnings season, I invite you to look inside our Surprise Trader portfolio ASAP. Now is the absolute best time to do it. "Positive Surprise" signals are flashing for a small handful of companies. The first of these special stocks will be posted after the market opens Monday morning and more will follow. Don't miss your chance to beat Wall Street to the punch and make the most of the potential double-digit price pops. Bonus: Another reason to look into this right away is that you are also invited to download our just-released "Early Warning Alert" report. It reveals Stocks to Sell BEFORE They Report Earnings in the Coming Weeks. Our strategy works both ways, and you can use this report to avoid companies that are more likely to report negative surprises. But don't delay. Our "surprise" recommendations are generally closed to the public. Today the portfolio is open again, but your chance to gain access ends on midnight Monday, July 11. See our Surprise Trader stocks now » All the Best,  David
Dave Bartosiak is Zacks' resident earnings surprise expert. He selects stocks and delivers commentary for our Surprise Trader portfolio. |
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