Advertisement
U.S. markets open in 6 hours 56 minutes
  • S&P Futures

    5,306.25
    -2.00 (-0.04%)
     
  • Dow Futures

    40,125.00
    -19.00 (-0.05%)
     
  • Nasdaq Futures

    18,497.75
    -6.00 (-0.03%)
     
  • Russell 2000 Futures

    2,135.90
    -2.50 (-0.12%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    81.82
    +0.47 (+0.58%)
     
  • Gold

    2,216.30
    +3.60 (+0.16%)
     
  • Silver

    24.73
    -0.03 (-0.11%)
     
  • EUR/USD

    1.0823
    -0.0007 (-0.06%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.1960
    0.0000 (0.00%)
     
  • Vix

    12.78
    -0.46 (-3.47%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2627
    -0.0011 (-0.09%)
     
  • USD/JPY

    151.3470
    +0.1010 (+0.07%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    70,029.54
    -280.70 (-0.40%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,931.98
    +1.02 (+0.01%)
     
  • Nikkei 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     

The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Baxter International, NuVasive, Hill-Rom Holdings, LM Ericsson Telephone and Becton, Dickinson


For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – January 23, 2013 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include Baxter International (BAX), NuVasive Inc. (NUVA), Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. (HRC), Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) and LM Ericsson Telephone Company (ERIC).

Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5513

Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:

Earnings Preview: Baxter

Baxter International (BAX) is set to report its fourth-quarter 2012 results before the opening bell on Thursday, Jan 24. Let’s see how things are shaping up prior to the announcement.

In the last quarter, the company did not post any earnings surprise reflecting indifferent performance by the company.

Factors to Consider This Past Quarter

The news regarding Baxter still remains somewhat mixed. On the positive side, Baxter’s focus on life-sustaining products which are not commoditized, partly insulate it from an economic downturn. The company is able to generate recurring revenues, and consistent cash flow, due to its focus on chronic diseases. Among other positive factors, Baxter retains a strong product pipeline with several products in late-stage clinical development.

On the flip side, despite resilience in certain sub-segments, we are concerned about relative stagnation in sales, a slightly somber outlook for hospital spending and tightening of reimbursement.

Improved execution has lifted sentiment somewhat toward Baxter. It is a good bet for value investors willing to wait as fundamentals improve further.

Earnings Whispers?

Our proven model does not conclusively show that Baxter is likely to beat earnings estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) (Read: Zacks Earnings ESP: A Better Method) and a Zacks Rank of #1, 2 or 3 for this to happen. This is not the case here as you will see below.

Zacks Earnings ESP: The Most Accurate estimate stands at $1.25, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.26. This comes to a difference of -0.79%.

Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Baxter’s Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) lowers the predictive power of ESP. The Zacks Rank #3 together with negative ESP earnings makes surprise prediction difficult.

Other Stocks to Consider

Here are some other companies you may want to consider as our model shows they have the right ingredients to post an earnings beat this quarter:

NuVasive Inc. (NUVA), Earnings ESP of 72.73% and Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy)

Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. (HRC), Earnings ESP of 2.27% and Zacks Rank #2 (Buy)

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX), Earnings ESP of 3.25% and Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Ericsson Acquires French Company

LM Ericsson Telephone Company (ERIC) recently announced its intention to acquire the Telecom & Media subsidiary of France-based consulting company, Devoteam. This acquisition is in line with Ericsson’s strategy of expanding its IT capabilities.

Devoteam is a leading player in the information and communications technology consulting across Europe, Middle East and Africa.

The company’s core competency lies in consulting and systems integration for operations and business support, service delivery platforms and applications, IP Multimedia Subsystems, IP and radio networks and TV. This deal also includes the acquisition of TV SmartVision operations.

This deal is also consistent with Devoteam’s 2015 strategic plan to become a niche player and focus more on the company’s value propositions.

Prior to this deal, Ericsson has been a key business partner for Devoteam in the United Kingdom and the Mediterranean regions. Therefore, this acquisition is expected to further strengthen the alliance between the two companies moving forward.

The deal is expected to be complete by second quarter of 2013 whereby all the 400 professionals from Devoteam’s subsidiary will be joining Ericsson. However, the closure is subject to regulatory compliance and procedures.

Ericsson seeks to gain expertise in complex, strategic and technical consulting assignments through the acquisition, which will enable it to enhance customer value. Apart from this, Ericsson has completed two major acquisitions of Telcordia and Conceptwave in the recent past.

Want more from Zacks Equity Research? Subscribe to the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5515.

About Zacks Equity Research

Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term.

Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.

Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5517

About Zacks

Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leon Zacks. As a PhD from MIT Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system; the Zacks Rank, which 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! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at http://at.zacks.com/?id=5518.

Visit http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/zacksresearch

Join us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Zacks-Investment-Research/57553657748?ref=ts

Disclaimer: Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investors should always research companies and securities before making any investments. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security.

Media Contact
Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com

http://www.zacks.com

Read the analyst report on BAX

Read the analyst report on NUVA

Read the analyst report on HRC

Read the analyst report on BDX

Read the analyst report on ERIC

Zacks Investment Research



More From Zacks.com

Advertisement