NCR To Report Q1 Earnings: Key Aspects To Watch Out For

NCR Corporation (NYSE:NCR) is slated to release its first-quarter 2018 results on May 1. Notably, the company beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average positive earnings surprise of 9.7%. In the last reported quarter, the company came up with a positive earnings surprise of 7%.

Let’s see how things are shaping up this time.

Factors to Consider

NCR’s growing exposure in the self-service kiosk space is encouraging. Continuous product launches, growing popularity of its self-service offerings and synergies from acquisitions are the catalysts.

In February, NCR launched payment solutions aimed at retailers and restaurants based out of Europe. In January, it announced that the Union Bank of the Philippines (UBP) had chosen NCR SelfServ 83 powered by its Interactive Teller for its prototype branch.

NCR also opened its global headquarters in Midtown Atlanta in January. Notably, there were certain managerial changes during the quarter. Paul Langenbahn was promoted to the position of COO. Additionally, Bill Nuti, the company’s chairman and CEO decided to step down due to health issues.

We remain cautious about the weakness in the ATM business as large customers across North America, India, the Middle East and Africa delayed their spending. A slow conversion to Windows 10 is the other primary reason behind softness in ATM business. Also, competition from Diebold Inc. and HP Inc., and a high debt burden remain concerns.

What the Zacks Model Says

According to the Zacks model, a company with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold) has a good chance of beating estimates if it also has a positive Earnings ESP. The Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or #5) are best avoided.

NCR has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, which makes surprise prediction difficult. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter earnings is pegged at 44 cents per share, indicating a 21.4% decrease on a year-over-year basis. Revenues are estimated to be around $1.47 billion, suggesting a 0.71% decline from the year-ago quarter.

Stocks to Consider

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

Paycom Software, Inc. (NYSE:PAYC) has an Earnings ESP of +0.33% and a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) has an Earnings ESP of +3.43% and a Zacks Rank #1.

Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) has an Earnings ESP of +0.20% and a Zacks Rank #1.

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