7 Stocks With Recent Price Strength For Explosive Returns

An investor always seeks a win-win strategy, but it is easier said than done. And when the market is as volatile as it is now, things become difficult for even an ardent investor.

One could take resort to commonly used techniques to find beaten down stocks that have the potential to recover faster than others. But this also bears the risk of disappointment. Particularly, one could be stuck in the value trap if the hidden weaknesses in a selected stock is not identified.

So, wouldn’t it be a safer strategy to look for stocks that are winners currently and have the potential to gain further?

Here’s how to execute it:

One should primarily look for stocks that have recently been witnessing price increase. Actually, stocks seeing price strength recently have a high chance of carrying the momentum forward.

If a stock is continuously moving higher, there must be a good reason for the rise or else it probably would have fallen like the losers. So, looking at those stocks that have already won the game and are capable of beating the benchmark that they have already set sounds rational.

However, recent price strength alone cannot create magic, so you need to set other relevant parameters to create a successful investment strategy.

Here’s how you should create the screen to shortlist the current as well as the potential winners.

Screening Parameters:

Percentage Change in Price (4 Weeks) greater than zero: This criterion shows that the stock moved higher in the last four weeks.

Percentage Change Price (12 Weeks) greater than 10: This indicates that the stock saw momentum over the last three months. This lowers the risk of choosing stocks that may have drawn attention due to the overwhelming performance of the overall market in a very short period.

Zacks Rank 1: No matter whether the market conditions are good or bad, stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) have a proven history of outperformance.

Average Broker Rating 1: This indicates that brokers are also highly hopeful about the stock’s future performance.

Current Price greater than 5: The stocks must all be trading at a minimum of $5 or higher.

Current Price/52-Week High-Low Range more than 85%: This criterion filters stocks that are trading near their respective 52-week highs. It indicates that these are strong enough in terms of price.

Here are seven of the 10 stocks that made it through this screen:

GlycoMimetics Inc. (NASDAQ:GLYC) is a biotechnology company. The company focuses on the discovery and development of novel glycomimetic drugs to address diseases in which carbohydrate biology plays a key role. The company beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate thrice in the preceding four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 55.9%.

Lion Biotechnologies Inc. (NASDAQ:LBIO) develops autologous cell therapies for the treatment of cancer. The company beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate thrice in the preceding four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 19.2%.

AMN Healthcare Services Inc. (NYSE:AHS) is a travel healthcare staffing company. It recruits and places nurses, physicians, and other healthcare professionals in travel or permanent assignments in acute-care facilities, physician practice groups and other healthcare facilities. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 23.6%.

Gibraltar Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROCK) is a leading manufacturer, processor, and distributor of metals and other engineered materials for the building products, vehicular, and other industrial markets. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 74.5%.

Coherent Inc. (NASDAQ:COHR) designs, manufactures, and supplies electro-optical systems and medical instruments utilizing laser, precision optic and microelectronic technologies. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 19.8%.

Norbord Inc. (NYSE:OSB) is a producer of wood-based panels. It operates primarily in the United States, Europe and Canada. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the preceding two quarters, with an average positive surprise of 134.3%.

Sibanye Gold Limited (NYSE:SBGL) is a gold mining company. It operates two gold mines: the Kloof Driefontein Complex (KDC) and the Beatrix gold mines.

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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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