Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Over the last four quarters, the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates four times.Р”Р„n earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.Р”Р‡or the last reported quarter, it was expected that ICE would post earnings of $1.09 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.13, delivering a surprise of +3.67%. While calculating estimates for a company's future earnings, analysts often consider to what extent it has been able to match past consensus estimates. So, this combination indicates that ICE will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate.Р”Вoes Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue? On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #2.

This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +0.77%. Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and/or Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) or 5 (Strong Sell).Р”Р‡or ICE, the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.Р”Р„ positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate.

The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier. The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Our proprietary surprise prediction model - the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) - has this insight at its core. Investors should keep in mind that the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts may not always get reflected in the aggregate change.Р”В®stimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out.

This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0.27% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. Revenues are expected to be $1.77 billion, up 13.5% from the year-ago quarter. This owner of the New York Stock Exchange and other stock markets is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.30 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +1.6%.

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