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AT&T, eBay, & Visa All Set to Top Earnings Estimates Today

Benjamin Rains
Updated
SNE vs. DLB: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

Stocks opened slightly lower on Wednesday even as big-name companies continue to perform well during quarterly earnings season. This means that investors need to be even more selective and only consider buying stocks that are expected to outperform expectations.

Economic bellwethers Caterpillar CAT and 3M MMM provided downbeat guidance after reporting strong quarterly results recently, which helped quash some investor confidence. These moves also underscore larger market uncertainty and put even pressure on companies to post Q1 earnings beats in order to boost investor confidence in the near-term. 

With that said, let’s take a look at three well-known companies that look poised to impress investors on Wednesday, by posting better-than-expected earnings results. To do this, Zacks Premium customers can utilize the Earnings ESP Screener in order to search for stocks that are expected to surprise.

This is done because, generally speaking, when an analyst posts an estimate right before an earnings release, it means that they have fresh information which could potentially be more accurate than what analysts thought about a company two or three months ago.

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A positive Earnings ESP paired with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better ranking helps us feel confident about the potential for an earnings beat. In fact, our 10-year backtest has revealed that this methodology has accurately produced a positive surprise 70% of the time.

Today, we are giving our readers a free look at three of these strong stocks in order to help them avoid any further losses as market volatility continues.

Check them out now: 

1.      AT&T T

AT&T stock is down 12% over the last year and 6% in the last 12 weeks. Shares also dipped in early morning trading on Wednesday, which might signal that investors are nervous about AT&T ahead of its first quarter earnings report. But the company’s bottom line estimates should please investors. AT&T is expected to see its earnings surge 17.6% from the year-ago period to reach $0.87 per share, based on our current Zacks Consensus Estimates.

AT&T is also currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and sports an Earnings ESP of 1.53%. The company’s Most Accurate Estimate—the representation of the most recent analyst sentiment—calls for earnings of $0.89 per share, which comes in 2 cents above our current consensus estimate. Therefore, AT&T is a stock that investors can reasonably expect to top Q1 earnings estimates.  

2.       eBay EBAY

EBay’s quarterly revenues are projected to hit $2.6 billion, which would mark a 17.2% climb. Meanwhile, the company’s earnings are expected to expand by 8.2% to reach $0.53 per share. Better still, eBay’s Most Accurate Estimate calls for earnings of $0.54 per share, which comes in 1 cent above our current consensus estimate.

The company is also currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and rocks an Earnings ESP of 0.91%. Therefore, investors can consider eBay a stock that looks poised to top Q1 earnings estimates when it reports its financial results after market close.

3.       Visa V

Shares of Visa slipped slightly today, but are still up 31% over the last year and 3% in the last month. And it looks like Visa might be able to continue its current run as its quarterly revenues are projected to reach $4.78 billion. Meanwhile, the credit card firm’s quarterly earnings are expected to expand by 17.4% to hit $1.01 per share. 

Investors should also note that the company’s Most Accurate Estimate comes in 1 cent above our current consensus estimate at $1.02 per share. This gives Visa an Earnings ESP of 0.73%, which coupled with its Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) ranking, means that investors should consider Visa a stock that could beat quarterly earnings estimates. 

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Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
eBay Inc. (EBAY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
AT&T Inc. (T) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
3M Company (MMM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Visa Inc. (V) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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Zacks Investment Research