5 Stocks With Upgraded Broker Ratings Worth Considering

With the second-quarter reporting cycle in full swing, one should keep an eye on the financial performance of companies. But betting on stocks just based on their quarterly performance is not the correct long-term investment strategy.

Several technical and fundamental aspects must be taken into account while choosing stocks with steady performance. So, advice from an expert comes in handy while selecting such stocks.

One can easily choose attractive stocks by following broker upgrades. Brokers have deeper insight of what’s happening in a particular company. Also, they thoroughly analyze the company fundamentals and place them against the current economic backdrop to figure out how the stock will fare as an investment.

Also, brokers directly communicate with top management, attend conference calls and go through the company’s publicly available financial documents. They even talk to customers to understand their likes/dislikes for the products and services offered by the company.

So, when a broker upgrades a stock, one can definitely rely on it. But merely depending on it is not wise though. One must take into consideration several other factors to ensure strong returns.

Picking the Winning Strategy

We have a screening strategy that will help in your search for potential winners:

Broker Rating Upgrades (4 weeks): The screen selects stocks that have witnessed broker rating upgrades over the last four weeks.

Current Price greater than 5: The stocks must be trading above $5.

Average 20-day Volume greater than 100,000: A large trading volume guarantees that the stock is easily tradable.

Zacks Rank equal to #1: No matter whether market conditions are good or bad, stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) have a proven record of success. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

VGM Score equal to A: Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 (Buy) offer the best upside potential.

Here are five of the 11 stocks that made it through the screen:

Headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ, Magellan Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGLN) is engaged in the healthcare management business. The company’s earnings are expected to grow at the rate of 9.9% in the current year. The stock has witnessed 13.3% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM) , headquartered in Milwaukee, WI, is a publicly owned investment manager. The company’s current year earnings are expected to grow at the rate of 51%. The stock has witnessed 6.7% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Beverly Hills, CA-based Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:LYV) operates as a live entertainment company. The company’s earnings are expected to grow at the rate of 158.7% for the current fiscal year. The stock has witnessed 1.9% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Herman Miller, Inc. (NASDAQ:MLHR) , based in Zeeland, MI, in engaged in research, design, manufacture, and distribution of office furniture systems, seating products, other freestanding furniture elements, textiles, home furnishings, and related services. The company’s current year earnings are expected to grow at the rate of 7.4%. The stock has witnessed 22.2% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Milwaukee, WI-based ManpowerGroup Inc. (NYSE:MAN) provides workforce solutions and services. For the current year, the company’s earnings are projected to grow at the rate of 8.1%. The stock has witnessed 2.9% upward revision in broker ratings over the past four weeks.

Get the rest of the stocks on the list and start putting this and other ideas to the test. It can all be done with the Research Wizard stock picking and back testing software.

The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.

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Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance

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Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (APAM): Free Stock Analysis Report

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (LYV): Free Stock Analysis Report

Magellan Health, Inc. (MGLN): Free Stock Analysis Report

ManpowerGroup (MAN): Free Stock Analysis Report

Herman Miller, Inc. (MLHR): Free Stock Analysis Report

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