Why Earnings Season Could Be Great for AXIS Capital (AXS)
Investors are always looking for stocks that are poised to beat at earnings season and AXIS Capital Holdings Limited AXS may be one such company. The firm has earnings coming up pretty soon, and events are shaping up quite nicely for their report.
That is because AXIS Capital is seeing favorable earnings estimate revision activity as of late, which is generally a precursor to an earnings beat. After all, analysts raising estimates right before earnings—with the most up-to-date information possible—is a pretty good indicator of some favorable trends underneath the surface for AXS in this report.
In fact, the Most Accurate Estimate for the current quarter is currently at 99 cents per share for AXS, compared to a broader Zacks Consensus Estimate of 93 cents per share. This suggests that analysts have very recently bumped up their estimates for AXS, giving the stock a Zacks Earnings ESP of 6.45% heading into earnings season.
Axis Capital Holdings Limited Price and EPS Surprise
Axis Capital Holdings Limited Price and EPS Surprise | Axis Capital Holdings Limited Quote
Why is this Important?
A positive reading for the Zacks Earnings ESP has proven to be very powerful in producing both positive surprises, and outperforming the market. Our recent 10 year backtest shows that stocks that have a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better show a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and have returned over 28% on average in annual returns (see more Top Earnings ESP stocks here).
Given that AXS has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and an ESP in positive territory, investors might want to consider this stock ahead of earnings. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Clearly, recent earnings estimate revisions suggest that good things are ahead for AXIS Capital, and that a beat might be in the cards for the upcoming report.
Zacks' Top 10 Stocks for 2017
In addition to the stocks discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 finest tickers for the entirety of 2017?
Who wouldn't? These 10 are painstakingly hand-picked from 4,400 companies covered by the Zacks Rank. They are our primary picks to buy and hold. Be among the very first to see them >>
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
Axis Capital Holdings Limited (AXS): Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research