For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – January 29, 2020 – 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: Eagle Bancorp Montana Inc. (NASDAQ:EBMT) , American River Bankshares (NASDAQ:AMRB) , Meritage Homes Corp. (NYSE:MTH) , M/I Homes Inc. (NYSE:MHO) and KB Home (NYSE:KBH) .
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
5 Top-Ranked U.S.-Focused Stocks to Defy Volatility
On Jan 27, Wall Street plunged along with several major stock markets globally as investors' remained highly concerned about the impact of coronavirus on China and the global economy.
The Chinese health authority confirmed that already 4,515 people are infected among whom 106 have died. The United States, Australia, European region, Japan, South Korea, India and several Middle East countries have confirmed positive cases of coronavirus.
Stock Markets Plummet Globally
On Jan 27, the three major stock indexes — the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite — plunged 1.6%, 1.6% and 1.9%, respectively. For the Dow and the S&P 500, this represented the worst daily drop since Oct. 2, while the Nasdaq Composite declined the most since Aug 23.
The Dow continued its losing streak for five straight days, posting its longest losing streak since August. The S&P 500 recorded its first single-day decline of more than 1% after 74 consecutive trading days.
Internationally, Japanese Nikkei 225 shed 2%, the German DAX lost 2.6%, France’s CAC 40 tumbled more than 2% and the pan-European Stoxx 600 Index tanked 2.3%. Meanwhile, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) — popularly considered as the best volatility gauge of Wall Street — jumped 25.1% to 18.23.
U.S. Economy Remains Stable
A series of recently released economic data for December like retail sales, housing and manufacturing output confirmed U.S. economic stability and clearly indicates that the historically longest expansionary phase is here to stay.
The recently signed phase-one trade deal between the United States and China has significantly cooled down the nearly two-year old tariff war. The interim deal will at least help in restoring U.S. business confidence and global economic growth.
The Fed chair has reiterated his commitment to do whatever is needed to support economic expansion and not raise interest rate until inflation, which is currently just 1.6%, crosses the Fed’s target level of 2%. Unemployment rate is currently at the lowest level in 50 years.
Moreover, U.S. GDP grew more than 2% in the first three quarters of 2019 and is expected to grow more or less same in the fourth quarter. Corporate profits are estimated to take a positive turn from the beginning of 2020.
Why U.S.-Focused Stocks?
Investors are concerned that the outbreak of coronavirus will hurt sales of U.S. multinational companies as their products will be vulnerable in international markets. An expected decline in China's economic growth will delay global economic recovery. U.S. exports — especially the manufacturing and agricultural products — will face the brunt of it.
On the other hand, domestic-business-oriented companies are mostly immune to any external shock since the United States is the lone market for their products. Moreover, a stable and growing U.S. economy will support demand for their products. This will help them to outperform the broader market defying extreme volatility.
Our Top Picks
At this juncture, investment in domestic-business-focused stocks will be fruitful. We have narrowed down our search to five such stocks with strong growth potential. Each of our picks carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Eagle Bancorp Montana Inc. provides retail banking services in the south central portion of Montana. It offers various deposit and loan products and services. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of 11.6% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 1% over the past 60 days.
American River Bankshares is a regional bank in Northern California with 10 full service branches in Sacramento, Sonoma, Placer and Amador Counties as well as two loan production offices in the San Francisco Bay Area. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of 24.5% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6.4% over the past 60 days.
Meritage Homes Corp. designs and builds single-family homes in the United States. It operates through two segments, Homebuilding and Financial Services. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of 19.2% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 0.2% over the past 60 days.
M/I Homes Inc. operates as a builder of single-family homes in the United States. It operates through four segments: Midwest Homebuilding, Southern (NYSE:SO) Homebuilding, Mid-Atlantic Homebuilding and Financial Services. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of 13% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 3.5% over the past 60 days.
KB Home operates as a homebuilding company in the United States. It operates in four segments: West Coast, Southwest, Central and Southeast. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of 29.1% for the current year (ending November 2020). The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6.1% over the past 60 days.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>
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Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. (EBMT): Free Stock Analysis Report
American River Bankshares (AMRB): Free Stock Analysis Report
Meritage Homes Corporation (MTH): Free Stock Analysis Report
KB Home (KBH): Free Stock Analysis Report
M/I Homes, Inc. (MHO): Free Stock Analysis Report
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