5 Relative Price Strength Stocks That You Will Want To Own
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Investors generally gauge a stock’s potential returns by examining earnings growth and valuation multiples. At the same time, it’s important to measure the performance of such a stock relative to its industry or peers, or the appropriate benchmark.
If you see that a stock is underperforming on fundamental factors, it would be prudent to move on and find a better alternative. However, those outperforming their respective sectors in terms of the price should be selected because they stand a better chance to provide considerable returns.
Then again, it is imperative that you determine whether or not an investment has relevant upside potential when considering stocks with significant relative price strength. Stocks delivering better than the S&P 500 over a period of 1 to 3 months at the least and having solid fundamentals indicate room for growth and are the best ways to go about this strategy.
Finally, it is important to find out whether analysts are optimistic about the upcoming earnings of these companies. In order to do this, we have added positive estimate revisions for the current quarter’s (Q1) earnings to our screen. When a stock undergoes an upward revision, it leads to additional price gains.
Screening Parameters
Relative % Price change – 12 weeks greater than 0
Relative % Price change – 4 weeks greater than 0
Relative % Price change – 1 week greater than 0
(We have considered those stocks that have been outperforming the S&P 500 over the last 12 weeks, four weeks, and one week.)
% Change (Q1) Est. over 4 Weeks greater than 0: Positive current quarter estimate revisions over the last four weeks.
Zacks Rank equal to 1: Only Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks — that have returned more than 26% annually over the last 26 years and surpassed the S&P 500 in 23 of the last 26 years — can get through.
Current Price greater than or equal to $5 and Average 20-day Volume greater than or equal to 50,000: A minimum price of $5 is a good standard to screen low-priced stocks, while a high trading volume would imply adequate liquidity.
VGM Score less than or equal to B: Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 (Buy) offer the best upside potential.
Here are five of the 29 stocks that made it through the screen:
Magna International Inc. (MGA Quick Quote MGA - Free Report): Magna International is a manufacturer and supplier of complete automotive components. The 2021 Zacks Consensus Estimate for this Aurora, ON-based firm indicates 87.85% earnings per share growth over 2020. Magna International has a VGM Score of A.
The Mosaic Company (MOS Quick Quote MOS - Free Report): A leading producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash for the global agriculture industry, The Mosaic Company has a VGM Score of B. Over the past 30 days, this Tampa, FL-based firm has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2021 improve 54.2%.
Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (LPX Quick Quote LPX - Free Report): This Nashville, TN-based company is a leading manufacturer of sustainable, quality engineered wood building materials and structural framing products. Louisiana-Pacific has a VGM Score of A and an excellent earnings surprise history, having surpassed estimates in each of the last four quarters by 41.54%, on average.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF Quick Quote ANF - Free Report): Abercrombie & Fitch operates as a specialty retailer of premium, high-quality casual apparel for men, women, and kids. Sporting a VGM Score of A, this New Albany, OH-headquartered company’s expected EPS growth rate for three to five years currently stands at 18%, comparing favorably with the industry's growth rate of 11.2%.
Moelis & Company (MC Quick Quote MC - Free Report): Formed in 2007 and headquartered in New York, Moelis & Company is a global investment bank, providing strategic and financial advisory services to corporations, governments, and financial sponsors across all major industries. The company has a VGM Score of B and an enviable earnings surprise history, having surpassed estimates in each of the last four quarters, delivering an earnings surprise of 673.17%, on average.
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