Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) is set to report third quarter 2013 results on Aug 15. Last quarter, it posted a 23% positive surprise. Let’s see how things are shaping up for this announcement.
Growth Factors this Past Quarter
The company’s second-quarter earnings were above the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4 cents driven by higher volumes and effective cost control measures. Revenues jumped approximately 25% sequentially due to increased demand in the SSG and Display segments.
The second quarter was strong for Applied in terms of margin growth. This was mainly attributable to higher volumes and lower inventory charges.
Earnings Whispers?
Our proven model does not conclusively show that Applied Materials will beat earnings this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP (Read: Zacks Earnings ESP: A Better Method) and a Zacks Rank #1, #2 or #3 for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.
Zacks ESP: Both the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate stand at 19 cents. Hence, the difference is 0.00%.
Zacks Rank #3 (Hold): Applied’s Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) when combined with a 0.00% ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.
We caution against stocks with Zacks Ranks #4 and #5 (Sell rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions momentum.
Other Stocks to Consider
You could consider other stocks with a positive earnings ESP and Zacks Rank #1, #2 or #3 such as:
Rambus Inc (RMBS), with an ESP of +42.86% and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy)
Micron Tech (MU), with Earnings ESP of +28.57% and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy)
InvenSense Inc. (INVN), Earnings ESP of +5.26% and a Zacks Rank #3(Hold)
Read the Full Research Report on RMBS
Read the Full Research Report on MU
Read the Full Research Report on AMAT
Read the Full Research Report on INVN
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