For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – December 30, 2016 - Stocks in this week’s article include B&G Foods Inc. (NYSE:BGS –Free Report),Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT –Free Report),Movado Group Inc. (NYSE:MOV –Free Report),Exa Corporation (NASDAQ:EXA –Free Report) and SCANA Corporation (NYSE:SCG – Free Report).
Screen of the Week of Zacks Investment Research:
Buy These 5 Low-Beta Stocks to Fight Market Volatility
“If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary” – Jim Rohn.
This is widely practiced in the investment world as to garner high returns one has to gamble. The statement specifically holds true when the market conditions are bullish. However, an investor should also prepare for a reversal in market conditions.
In this article, we have established the fact that a portfolio of low-risk stocks can be rewarding if a few other parameters are taken into account.
Understanding of Beta
Beta measures the volatility or risks to a security relative to the market (we are considering the S&P 500 here). That is, beta measures the extent to which the price of a stock moves with respect to the market.
If the beta is equal to 1 it means that the stock is as volatile as the market. So, a stock is relatively more volatile if it has beta greater than 1 and less volatile if beta is less than 1.
For example, if the beta is 1.8 then the stock will witness 80% more movement than the market. Hence, we can say that if the market goes up, the stock will outperform by 80%. Conversely, if the market plunges, the stock will lose much more value than the market.
Building a Low-Risk Portfolio
In order to find stocks with lower-than-market volatility, we added beta between 0 and 0.6 as our main criterion for screening. However, we need to keep in mind that low beta is not the only metric to be considered for choosing stocks in a volatile market. Hence to reach the winning strategy, we have considered a few additional criteria.
Percentage Change in Price in the last 4 Weeks: We considered those stocks that saw positive price movement over the last month.
Average 20 Day Volume greater than or equal to 50,000: A substantial trading volume ensures that the stocks are easily tradable.
Price greater than or equal to $5: They must all be trading at a minimum of $5 or higher.
Zacks Rank equal to 1: Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks indicate that they will significantly outperform the broader U.S. equity market over the next one to three months.
Here are five of the 20 stocks that fit the bill:
B&G Foods Inc. (NYSE:BGS – Free Report) – headquartered in Parsippany, NJ – is involved in manufacturing, selling and distributing portfolio of shelf-stable along with frozen food and household products in the U.S, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The company is anticipated to post 42.2% year-over-year earnings improvement in the current year. On top of that, over the last four quarters, the company posted an average positive earnings surprise of 12.16%.
Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT – Free Report) – based in Walnut Creek, CA – is a producer and marketer of pet products in the U.S. The company beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters, with the average being 72.53%. Moreover, the company is projected to post year-over-year earnings growth of almost 8% for the current year.
Movado Group Inc. (NYSE:MOV – Free Report) – based in Paramus, NJ – is a designer, developer, marketer and distributer of watches in the U.S. and also globally. The company posted an average positive earnings surprise of 10.53%, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters.
Exa Corporation (NASDAQ:EXA – Free Report) – headquartered in Burlington, MA – is the developer and seller of simulation software and services for vehicle manufacturers all over the world. For the current year, the company is expected to post 54.05% year-over-year earnings growth. Additionally, Exa Corporation beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all of the past four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of 68.06%.
SCANA Corporation (NYSE:SCG – Free Report) – based in Cayce, SC – is involved in the generation, distribution and sale of electricity to retail and wholesale customers in South Carolina. SCANA will likely post year-over-year earnings growth of 11.4% in the current year. On top of that, over the last four quarters, the company posted an average positive earnings surprise of 6.74%.
You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge.
The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.
Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today .
Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.
Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance .
Zacks Restaurant Recommendations: In addition to dining at these special places, you can feast on their stock shares. A Zacks Special Report spotlights 5 recent IPOs to watch plus 2 stocks that offer immediate promise in a booming sector. Download it free »
Sign up now for your free trial today and start picking better stocks immediately. And with the backtesting feature, you can test your ideas to see how you can improve your trading in both up markets and down markets. Don’t wait for the market to get better before you decide to do better. Start learning how to be a better trader today: https://at.zacks.com/?id=111
Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.
About Screen of the Week
Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine. But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use. Each week, Zacks Profit from the Pros free email newsletter shares a new screening strategy. Learn more about it here https://at.zacks.com/?id=112
About Zacks
Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978. The later formation of the Zacks Rank, a proprietary stock picking system; continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter; Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Click here for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros.
Get the full Report on BGS - FREE
Get the full Report on CENT - FREE
Get the full Report on MOV - FREE
Get the full Report on EXA - FREE
Get the full Report on SCG - FREE
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/zacksresearch
Join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZacksInvestmentResearch
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
Contact: Jim Giaquinto
Company: Zacks.com
Phone: 312-265-9268
Email: pr@zacks.com
Visit: https://www.zacks.com/performance
Zacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer .
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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
B&G FOODS CL-A (BGS): Free Stock Analysis Report
CENTRAL GARDEN (CENT): Free Stock Analysis Report
MOVADO GRP INC (MOV): Free Stock Analysis Report
EXA CORP (EXA): Free Stock Analysis Report
SCANA CORP (SCG): Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
