Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG) and many other big techs have already reported March quarter results. But don’t kid yourself. We’re just right about smack-dab in the middle of earnings season. This week scores of companies report. But for the best of the best, focus on the leading stocks in the elite IBD 50. Here are the seven IBD 50 tech stocks slated to report. Many of them are at or near all-time, or longtime, highs.
Check back and scroll down for timely updates as the companies report.
5. Acme Packet (APKT). This was another of our “test of time” companies last week. As we noted then, the company reports Q1 results on Tuesday, and analysts tell IBD they expect the maker “session border controllers” to report a strong quarter. SBCs help enable VoIP and videoconferencing via the Internet, and Acme sold 60% of all SBCs bought by phone companies last year, says research firm Infonetics.
It closed Thursday at an all-time closing high of 77.05, and during that day hit it all-time high of 79. The consensus of 15 brokers polled by Thomson Reuters calls for EPS to jump 56% to 25 cents while sales rise 40% to $71.3 million. That actually would be the company’s smallest percentage sales hike since Q4 2009.
8. Baidu (BIDU). Last week we asked what more can be said about China’s search leader, when it ranked among our “test of time” IBD 50 tech leaders. (In fact, we might have noted last week — and will do so now — that it is THE test of time leader. Of the tech companies on the current IBD 50, Baidu’s streak is by far the longest, going back to at least … October 2009).
What can be said is that its earnings are due out late Wednesday. The consensus of 13 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for EPS of 45 cents (that consensus rose a penny recently) vs. 20 cents a year ago, and revenue to rise 94% to $367.8 million. Big growth, in other words. It is big growth that investors are counting on — as the stock hit a new high on Wednesday of 154. But there also is substantial chatter online about China techs being in a bubble, due to such huge gains in their American Depositary Receipts. The U.S. stocks of not just Baidu and (see below) Sohu are on a roll, but so are many others. Here was a recent Seeking Alpha post, with comments.
11. Netflix (NFLX). Monday’s the day for this highflier, after the close of the regular session. The streamer of TV shows and movies to subscribers (and, of course, it also mails DVDs to subscribers that order online) got a boost last month from a Goldman Sachs upgrade to buy from hold.
Indeed, the consensus profit estimate of 24 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters has crept up from $1.05 in Jan. to $1.06 in Feb. to $1.08 this month. That would be a mere 83% jump from Q1 2010. It will be hard-pressed to beat last quarter’s results, though, when it edged analyst views by … 16 cents! Sales are expected to soar 43% to $703.6 million. With those kinds of numbers, investors seem to be gearing up, as the stock hit a new all-time high, and close high, of 252.32 and 252.22, on Thursday.
By the way, Netflix is a long-time IBD 50 stalwart, on the list each week since December 2009.)
19. Altera (ALTR). The maker of programmable chips – customers can reprogram them for specific needs – has been on a roll with its products for WiMax and LTE wireless base stations, digital TVs, set-top boxes, servers, storage appliances and much more. Its chips convert analog to digital, a growth arena. Last month, Citigroup upgraded Altera on word that its customer, China Mobile (CHL), planned to increase its infrastructure spending. It’s slated to report Q1 results on Tuesday. The consensus of 29 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is that EPS will rise 30% to 65 cents and sales will jump 33% to $536.6 million. The stock on Thursday closed at 45.99, its highest close since Oct. 2000 (it hit 46.08 during the session). IBD’s Daily Stock Analysis featured Altera last week.
23. Sohu (SOHU). The China Web portal is slated to report Q1 results early Monday, as is its 68.5%-owned games subsidiary, Changyou (CYOU). With new game “Duke of Mount Deer” finally getting untracked, analysts are upbeat. They expect Sohu’s EPS to jump 32% from the year-earlier quarter to 32 cents. They see sales rising 30% to $168.4 million. That would be the company’s largest percentage hike in sales in eight quarters.
The stock trades near an all-time high of 102.42, reached on April 11. Analysts expect Changyou’s EPS to rise 23% to 92 cents, while sales increase 31% to $94.4 million. That would mark its largest percentage sales hike in the past seven quarters.
But also note that the consensus of six analysts that provided Sohu numbers to Thomson Reuters took a tumble this month, with the outlook falling from 99 cents EPS on April 11 to, a week later, the 96 cents where it now stands.
29. ARM Holdings (ARMH). The No. 1 designer of chips for mobile phones and other devices — Texas Instruments (TXN), Samsung, Qualcomm (QCOM) and many other chipmakers are among its licensees — is trading near a more than 10-year high. It’s managed to hold off rivals, such as Intel, quite well. It’s also hoping to make some headway into Intel’s computer markets, but it’s really been riding the mobile wave the past two-plus years.
It’s due to report early Wednesday, and analysts expect EPS of 11 cents, up 22%, on sales of $173.3 million, up 24%. Since it depends on licenses, its fairly steady. So, the six analysts polled by Thomson Reuters all estimate between 10 cents and 12 cents EPS. So, a big surprise such as Netflix’s of last quarter is unlike, though ARM did beat by 4 cents in Q4. The stock’s 31.81 close on Thursday was, like Altera, its highest since Oct. 2000.
37. Skyworks Solutions (SWKS). The maker of wireless chips used in 3G and now 4G smart phones from HTC, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and others is out late Thursday with its fiscal Q2 numbers. The stock had been a longtime IBD 50 company, but just returns to the list after a rough patch in February and March.
It had a good week, but note it still sports an IBD Accumulation/Distribution rating of D-, which means institutions are still selling. But the consensus of 17 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expects the company, whose chips help manage power usage, to have a nice quarter. Analysts see EPS rising 62% to 39 cents a share, while sales rise 33% to $316.6 million.
Over at IBD's Capital Hill blog, Ed Carson reviews the charts (and vitals) of IBD 50's four medical stocksreporting earnings this week.
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