Earnings: The Indispensable Element Of Great Stocks
Corporate Earnings Reports
Companies report their earnings every three months,
and are widely disseminated soon after their release.
Investor's Business Daily publishes a comprehensive
list of the prior day's earnings reports, separating
those posting earnings gains from those reporting lower
results. The number of companies in each of these categories
helps you get an overall idea of the profitability of
U.S. corporations. The earnings table shows the percentage
above or below analysts' consensus estimates, and arrows
indicate whether there's been acceleration (up) or deceleration
(down) in earnings or sales growth compared to the prior
quarter. Any increase of 25% or better is boldfaced
in the "EPS % Chg" column. The company's entire
line is boldfaced when the EPS growth is more than 25%,
the EPS Rating is more than 85 and the earnings were
better than expected.
(For Sample Purposes Only)
When it comes to analysts' estimates, you want to see
forecasts that represent positive indications of growth.
But remember, these are only estimates, and they are
no substitute for a track record of past performance.
Daily Graphs includes earnings estimates.
One other point: Investors should also be wary any
time a company announces "record earnings."
If you think about it, a company could be growing at
just 2% or 3% and still have its best-ever quarter.
You don't just want earnings to be better than the year
before; you want to see remarkable gains.
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