Dj Dir Moise Gifts 145 Of Corecard Corp >Ccrd

For those looking to find strong Business Services stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is CoreCard Corporation (CCRD) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Business Services peers, we might be able to answer that question.

CoreCard Corporation is one of 308 companies in the Business Services group. The Business Services group currently sits at #5 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank is a proven model that highlights a variety of stocks with the right characteristics to outperform the market over the next one to three months. The system emphasizes earnings estimate revisions and favors companies with improving earnings outlooks. CoreCard Corporation is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CCRD's full-year earnings has moved 4.2% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that CCRD has returned about 28.3% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of 27% on a year-to-date basis. This means that CoreCard Corporation is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

OppFi Inc. (OPFI) is another Business Services stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has returned 33.4%.

For OppFi Inc. the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 16.2% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, CoreCard Corporation belongs to the Technology Services industry, a group that includes 165 individual stocks and currently sits at #65 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 53.8% so far this year, so CCRD is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

OppFi Inc. however, belongs to the Financial Transaction Services industry. Currently, this 43-stock industry is ranked #136. The industry has moved +23.7% so far this year.

CoreCard Corporation and OppFi Inc. could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Business Services stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

Zacks Investment Research

Have you been paying attention to shares of CoreCard Corporation (CCRD)? Shares have been on the move with the stock up 43% over the past month. The stock hit a new 52-week high of $17.82 in the previous session. CoreCard Corporation has gained 28.3% since the start of the year compared to the 27% move for the Zacks Business Services sector and the 53.8% return for the Zacks Technology Services industry.

What's Driving the Outperformance?

The stock has a great record of positive earnings surprises, as it hasn't missed our earnings consensus estimate in any of the last four quarters. In its last earnings report on October 31, 2024, CoreCard reported EPS of $0.3 versus consensus estimate of $0.17 while it beat the consensus revenue estimate by 17.19%.

For the current fiscal year, CoreCard is expected to post earnings of $0.61 per share on $55.98 million in revenues. This represents a 17.31% change in EPS on a -0.04% change in revenues. For the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $0.92 per share on $62.8 million in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 50.82% and 12.18%, respectively.

Valuation Metrics

CoreCard may be at a 52-week high right now, but what might the future hold for the stock? A key aspect of this question is taking a look at valuation metrics in order to determine if the company has run ahead of itself.

On this front, we can look at the Zacks Style Scores, as these give investors a variety of ways to comb through stocks (beyond looking at the Zacks Rank of a security). These styles are represented by grades running from A to F in the categories of Value, Growth, and Momentum, while there is a combined VGM Score as well. Investors should consider the style scores a valuable tool that can help you to pick the most appropriate Zacks Rank stocks based on their individual investment style.

CoreCard has a Value Score of B. The stock's Growth and Momentum Scores are C and F, respectively, giving the company a VGM Score of B.

In terms of its value breakdown, the stock currently trades at 29.1X current fiscal year EPS estimates, which is a premium to the peer industry average of 26.3X. On a trailing cash flow basis, the stock currently trades at 14.1X versus its peer group's average of 12.9X. This isn't enough to put the company in the top echelon of all stocks we cover from a value perspective.

Zacks Rank

We also need to consider the stock's Zacks Rank, as this supersedes any trend on the style score front. Fortunately, CoreCard currently has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) thanks to rising earnings estimates.

Since we recommend that investors select stocks carrying Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and Style Scores of A or B, it looks as if CoreCard meets the list of requirements. Thus, it seems as though CoreCard shares could have a bit more room to run in the near term.

How Does CCRD Stack Up to the Competition?

Shares of CCRD have been soaring, and the company still appears to be a decent choice, but what about the rest of the industry? One industry peer that looks good is Outbrain Inc. (OB). OB has a Zacks Rank of # 1 (Strong Buy) and a Value Score of A, a Growth Score of B, and a Momentum Score of C.

Earnings were strong last quarter. Outbrain Inc. beat our consensus estimate by 450%, and for the current fiscal year, OB is expected to post earnings of $0.30 per share on revenue of $237.8 million.

Shares of Outbrain Inc. have gained 6% over the past month, and currently trade at a forward P/E of 41.33X and a P/CF of 18.8X.

The Technology Services industry is in the top 26% of all the industries we have in our universe, so it looks like there are some nice tailwinds for CCRD and OB, even beyond their own solid fundamental situation.

Zacks Investment Research

CoreCard Corporation (CCRD) appears an attractive pick, as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). This upgrade primarily reflects an upward trend in earnings estimates, which is one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices.

The Zacks rating relies solely on a company's changing earnings picture. It tracks EPS estimates for the current and following years from the sell-side analysts covering the stock through a consensus measure -- the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Individual investors often find it hard to make decisions based on rating upgrades by Wall Street analysts, since these are mostly driven by subjective factors that are hard to see and measure in real time. In these situations, the Zacks rating system comes in handy because of the power of a changing earnings picture in determining near-term stock price movements.

Therefore, the Zacks rating upgrade for CoreCard basically reflects positivity about its earnings outlook that could translate into buying pressure and an increase in its stock price.

Most Powerful Force Impacting Stock Prices

The change in a company's future earnings potential, as reflected in earnings estimate revisions, has proven to be strongly correlated with the near-term price movement of its stock. That's partly because of the influence of institutional investors that use earnings and earnings estimates for calculating the fair value of a company's shares. An increase or decrease in earnings estimates in their valuation models simply results in higher or lower fair value for a stock, and institutional investors typically buy or sell it. Their transaction of large amounts of shares then leads to price movement for the stock.

For CoreCard, rising earnings estimates and the consequent rating upgrade fundamentally mean an improvement in the company's underlying business. And investors' appreciation of this improving business trend should push the stock higher.

Harnessing the Power of Earnings Estimate Revisions

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock movements, so it could be truly rewarding if such revisions are tracked for making an investment decision. Here is where the tried-and-tested Zacks Rank stock-rating system plays an important role, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions.

The Zacks Rank stock-rating system, which uses four factors related to earnings estimates to classify stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive externally-audited track record, with Zacks Rank #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Earnings Estimate Revisions for CoreCard

For the fiscal year ending December 2024, this company is expected to earn $0.61 per share, which is a change of 17.3% from the year-ago reported number.

Analysts have been steadily raising their estimates for CoreCard. Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company has increased 4.2%.

Bottom Line

Unlike the overly optimistic Wall Street analysts whose rating systems tend to be weighted toward favorable recommendations, the Zacks rating system maintains an equal proportion of 'buy' and 'sell' ratings for its entire universe of more than 4000 stocks at any point in time. Irrespective of market conditions, only the top 5% of the Zacks-covered stocks get a 'Strong Buy' rating and the next 15% get a 'Buy' rating. So, the placement of a stock in the top 20% of the Zacks-covered stocks indicates its superior earnings estimate revision feature, making it a solid candidate for producing market-beating returns in the near term.

The upgrade of CoreCard to a Zacks Rank #1 positions it in the top 5% of the Zacks-covered stocks in terms of estimate revisions, implying that the stock might move higher in the near term.

Zacks Investment Research

CoreCard Corporation (CCRD) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.30 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.17 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.09 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 76.47%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this company would post earnings of $0.07 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.15, delivering a surprise of 114.29%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times.

CoreCard, which belongs to the Zacks Technology Services industry, posted revenues of $15.7 million for the quarter ended September 2024, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 17.19%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $13.4 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates three times over the last four quarters.

The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call.

CoreCard shares have added about 1.1% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 21.9%.

What's Next for CoreCard?

While CoreCard has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock?

There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.

Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for CoreCard: mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.18 on $13.8 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $0.57 on $54.07 million in revenues for the current fiscal year.

Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Technology Services is currently in the top 23% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.

Another stock from the same industry, Society Pass Incorporated (SOPA), has yet to report results for the quarter ended September 2024.

This company is expected to post quarterly loss of $0.85 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +59.5%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.

Society Pass Incorporated's revenues are expected to be $2.47 million, up 8.6% from the year-ago quarter.

Zacks Investment Research