Earnings Growth & Price Strength Make Agilent Technologies (A) a Stock to Watch

Core Insights - Zacks offers a curated Focus List of 50 stocks aimed at long-term investors, expected to outperform the market over the next 12 months [2] - The Focus List has demonstrated strong past performance, with a cumulative return of 2,519.23% from February 1, 1996, to March 31, 2021, compared to the S&P 500's return of 854.95% [3] - The methodology for selecting stocks in the Focus List relies on earnings estimate revisions, which are critical for predicting future growth and profitability [4] Focus List Performance - In 2020, the Focus List gained 13.85% on an annualized basis, outperforming the S&P 500's return of 9.38% [3] - The stocks in the Focus List are selected based on a proprietary Zacks Rank model, which evaluates changes in quarterly earnings expectations [5] Stock Selection Criteria - Stocks are chosen based on positive changes to earnings estimates, indicating potential for future upward revisions and price momentum [6] - The Zacks Rank categorizes stocks into five groups, with the Focus List primarily consisting of 1 (Strong Buy) and 2 (Buy) ranked companies [5] Spotlight on Agilent Technologies - Agilent Technologies was added to the Focus List at $59.86 per share and has since increased by 143.08% to $145.51 [7] - For fiscal 2024, Agilent's earnings estimate has been revised upwards by five analysts, with the Zacks Consensus Estimate increasing by $0.03 to $5.51 [7] - Agilent's earnings are projected to grow by 1.3% for the current fiscal year [7]