Core Viewpoint - Central Garden (CENT) is a strong candidate for investors looking for stocks that consistently beat earnings estimates, particularly in the consumer products - discretionary industry [1] Earnings Performance - Central Garden has a history of beating earnings estimates, with an average surprise of 13.53% over the last two quarters [2] - In the most recent quarter, the company reported earnings of $1.56 per share, exceeding the expected $1.34 per share, resulting in a surprise of 16.42% [3] - For the previous quarter, Central Garden's earnings were $1.04 per share against an estimate of $0.94 per share, leading to a surprise of 10.64% [3] Earnings Estimates and Predictions - Recent estimates for Central Garden have been increasing, with a positive Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) indicating a strong likelihood of an earnings beat [6][9] - Stocks with a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold) or better have a nearly 70% chance of producing a positive surprise [7] - Central Garden currently has an Earnings ESP of +6.56%, suggesting analysts are optimistic about the company's earnings prospects [9] Importance of Earnings ESP - The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, with the Most Accurate Estimate reflecting the latest analyst revisions [8] - A positive Earnings ESP combined with a Zacks Rank of 3 indicates a potential earnings beat, while a negative Earnings ESP may reduce predictive power but does not necessarily indicate a miss [9][10]

Core Viewpoint - Central Garden (CENT) reported quarterly earnings of $1.04 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.94 per share, and showing an increase from $0.99 per share a year ago [1][2] Financial Performance - The earnings surprise for the quarter was 10.64%, with a significant prior quarter surprise of 800% when the company reported earnings of $0.21 per share against an expected loss of $0.03 [2] - Revenue for the quarter was $833.54 million, which fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.76% and decreased from $900.09 million year-over-year [3] - Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times but has only topped revenue estimates once [3] Stock Performance and Outlook - Central Garden shares have declined approximately 11% since the beginning of the year, compared to a 4.7% decline in the S&P 500 [4] - The company's earnings outlook is mixed, with current consensus EPS estimates of $1.32 for the upcoming quarter and $2.37 for the current fiscal year, alongside expected revenues of $1.01 billion and $3.23 billion respectively [8] Industry Context - The Consumer Products - Discretionary industry, to which Central Garden belongs, is currently ranked in the bottom 32% of over 250 Zacks industries, indicating potential challenges ahead [9] - The performance of Central Garden's stock may be influenced by the overall industry outlook, as research indicates that the top 50% of Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by more than 2 to 1 [9]