Intuit (INTU) To Report Q3 Earnings: Will It Disappoint?

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) is set to report third-quarter fiscal 2017 results on May 23. The company delivered a positive earnings surprise of 16.67% in the last reported quarter. Let's see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Factors at Play

Intuit reported modest fiscal second-quarter 2016 results. However, its revenue performance improved on a year-over-year basis, primarily due to better-than-expected growth in QuickBooks Online.

We are positive about Intuit’s growing SMB exposure and believe that its strategic acquisitions will boost the segment. Increased adoption of its cloud-based services and products is another positive.

Intuit has also restructured its business to focus on the QuickBooks services. The company expects to continue investing in this portfolio, which is likely to hurt its near-term profitability.

Moreover, rising competition from payroll solution providers such as Paycom Software Inc. and Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ:ADP) is a concern, especially considering the seasonality of Intuit’s tax business and the ongoing economic uncertainty.

Intuit Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model does not conclusively prove that Intuit will beat on earnings this quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.

Zacks ESP: Intuit’s ESP is -0.27% since the Most Accurate estimate of $3.64 per share is less than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.65 per share. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Intuit carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). We caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Strong Sell) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is witnessing negative estimate revisions.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies you may want to consider as our model shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) , with an Earnings ESP of +10% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

CareDx, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDNA) , with an Earnings ESP of +40% and a Zacks Rank #3.

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