Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Wall Street expects a year-over-year increase in earnings on higher revenues when Cognizant (CTSH - Free Report) reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. While this widely-known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company's earnings picture, a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations, it's worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis information technology consulting and outsourcing firm is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.38 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +5.3%.

Revenues are expected to be $5.48 billion, up 4.5% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0.18% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

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.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Cognizant?For Cognizant, the Most Accurate Estimate is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bearish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of -1.45%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #3.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Cognizant will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Cognizant would post earnings of $1.33 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.40, delivering a surprise of +5.26%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Cognizant doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Whether you're a growth, value, income, or momentum-focused investor, building a successful investment portfolio takes skill, research, and a little bit of luck.

But what's the best way to find the right combination of stocks? Because funding things like your retirement, your kids' college tuition, or your short- and long-term savings goals will definitely require significant returns.

Enter the Zacks Rank.

What is the Zacks Rank?A unique, proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank uses earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors create a winning portfolio.

There are four main factors behind the Zacks Rank: Agreement, Magnitude, Upside, and Surprise.

Agreement is the extent to which all brokerage analysts are revising their earnings estimates in the same direction. The greater the percentage of analysts revising their estimates higher, the better chance the stock will outperform.

Magnitude is the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate for the current and next fiscal years.

Upside is the difference between the most accurate estimate, which is calculated by Zacks, and the consensus estimate.

Surprise is made up of a company's last few quarters' earnings per share surprises; companies with a positive earnings surprise are more likely to beat expectations in the future.

Each factor is given a raw score, which is recalculated every night and compiled into the Zacks Rank. Utilizing this data, stocks are put into five different groups: Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Sell, and Strong Sell.

The Power of Institutional InvestorsThe Zacks Rank also allows individual investors, or retail investors, to benefit from the power of institutional investors.

Institutional investors are the professionals who manage the trillions of dollars invested in mutual funds, investment banks, and hedge funds. Studies have shown that these investors can and do move the market due to the large amounts of money they invest with. Because of this, the market tends to move in the same direction as institutional investors.

In order to figure out the fair value of a company and its shares, these investors will build valuation models focused on earnings and earnings expectations. Because if you raise estimates for the bottom line, it creates a higher fair value for a company.

With these changes, institutional investors will act, usually buying stocks with rising estimates and selling those with falling estimates. An increase in earnings expectations can potentially lead to higher stock prices and bigger gains for the investor.

Retail investors who get in at the first sign of upward revisions have a distinct advantage over larger investors since it can often take weeks, if not months, for an institutional investor to build a position. They'll also benefit from the expected institutional buying that could follow.

Not only can the Zacks Rank help you take advantage of trends in earnings estimate revisions, but it can also provide a way to get into stocks that are highly sought after by professionals.

How to Invest with the Zacks RankThe Zacks Rank is known for transforming investment portfolios. In fact, a portfolio of Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks has beaten the market in 26 of the last 32 years, with an average annual return of +23.94%.

Moreover, stocks with a new #1 (Strong Buy) ranking have some of the biggest profit potential, while those that fell to a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) have some of the worst.

Let's take a look at Carpenter Technology (CRS - Free Report) , which was added to the Zacks Rank #1 list on July 16, 2026. Philadelphia, PA-based Carpenter Technology Corporation is a producer and distributor of premium specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels as well as drilling tools. The company’s provides solutions for critical applications across diversified end-use markets - Aerospace and Defense (accounting for around 50.1% of the company’s revenues), Energy (5.3%), Transportation (3%), Medical (10.3%), Industrial and Consumer (12.3%) and Distribution (2.9%).

For fiscal 2026, four analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.09 to $10.58 per share. CRS boasts an average earnings surprise of 9%.

Earnings are expected to grow 41.4% for the current fiscal year, while revenue is projected to increase 8.5%.

CRS has been moving higher over the past four weeks as well, up 1.9% compared to the S&P 500's gain of 0.3%.

Bottom LineWith a #1 (Strong Buy) ranking, positive trend in earnings estimate revisions, and strong market momentum, Carpenter Technology should be on investors' shortlist.

If you want even more information on the Zacks Ranks, or one of our many other investing strategies, check out the Zacks Education home page.

Discover Today's Top StocksOur private Zacks #1 Rank List, based on our quantitative Zacks Rank stock-rating system, has more than doubled the S&P 500 since 1988. Applying the Zacks Rank in your own trading can boost your investing returns on your very next trade. See Today's Zacks #1 Rank List >>

Company Teases Transformational Product Functionality in Lead-up to Annual Customer Conference

, /PRNewswire/ -- Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB), the world's leading provider of AI-powered solutions for social impact, today announced multiple new agents within its Agents for Good™ suite—building on the success of the Development Agent—as well as several other AI-driven product enhancements, all of which are planned for delivery as part of a reimagined Blackbaud operating system for social impact.

"The solutions we're delivering today have been trusted by our customers for decades, but we've now completely rebuilt them under the surface to transform what's possible—especially with AI agents," said Mike Gianoni, president, CEO and vice chairman of the board of directors of Blackbaud. "We are connecting every product and learning from every interaction with AI that gets smarter over time. We're giving customers greater clarity on what to do next, more capacity to take action, and the confidence to leverage intelligent systems without sacrificing human judgment. There is no more powerful AI engine for social impact than Blackbaud."

Embedded, Trustworthy, Effective Agentic AI
Earlier this year, Blackbaud launched Agents for Good™, the first-ever digital teammates native to a social impact-specific platform, to help close capacity gaps commonly experienced by social impact teams. The first of these agents, the Development Agent, allows Blackbaud customers to execute fully autonomous donor engagement workflows under human supervision.

Even in the early stages of adoption, customers are experiencing success in engaging a broader donor base without increasing staff headcount. The Development Agent identifies every potential or dormant donor who is not in a major gift officer portfolio and executes a personalized, brand-aligned, multi-touch engagement sequence. Its reply rate is 76 times the industry average, and it has a message open rate 10 points higher than the industry average, leading to an attributable gift size that is 39% higher.

"We're using the Development Agent to accelerate donor connections and make those connections more impactful in a shorter period," said Brian Otis, vice president for university advancement at the University of New Haven. "This will help us accelerate fundraising across all levels."

Building on the success of the Development Agent, Blackbaud announced today four new Agents for Good planned for the coming month that expand beyond the development office:

The Data Health Agent, which will run autonomously within fundraising solutions to identify duplicate records, confirm contact information and resolve constituent life changes, helping the development office run more curated and targeted campaigns. The Admissions Agent, which will support independent K–12 schools by guiding families through the process, allowing all schools to offer a high-touch, personalized admissions experience that previously only the most well-resourced institutions could achieve, resulting in more complete applications. The Digital Marketing Agent, a sector-specific marketing agent, which will help plan campaigns intelligently, from audience selection and content creation to real-time campaign optimization across channels. The Accounts Payable Agent, the first autonomous AI agent within Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT®, which will help accounts payable teams reduce manual work across each payment cycle by supporting policy-based processing, improving operational efficiency and enabling teams to scale capacity seamlessly. Blackbaud Agents for Good stand apart because they are embedded directly in the solutions customers already trust and use every day, reducing the data gaps and security risks created by bolt-on agents.

AI-Powered Product Enhancements 
AI innovation across Blackbaud's platform extends beyond Agents and includes AI-powered enhancements for products across the portfolio, including powerful updates announced today for Financial Edge NXT®.

AI Document Intelligence that processes invoices in seconds, addressing one of the most labor-intensive tasks in finance operations while reducing the risk of data-entry errors. AI Document Intelligence extracts key details from invoices and receipts and then generates draft records automatically, directly removing hours of manual data entry, while keeping teams in control of every review and approval. Import Mapping Assistant that eliminates friction when importing budgets, payables or other data by automatically matching incoming fields to the correct Financial Edge NXT® fields for improved data quality at a fraction of the time. AI Anomaly Detection & Reconciliation Assistants that deliver continuous oversight, reviewing transactions and identifying unusual activity, potential errors, duplicate payments, misclassifications or suspicious patterns. This helps teams catch issues as they happen, rather than after the books are closed. Bridging the AI Effectiveness Gap
Blackbaud is the only AI solutions provider that combines the sector's richest social impact signal graph, embedded sector context, and purpose-built governance—all of which lead to better outcomes for customers. Better outcomes build trust over time, and trust makes organizations willing to let systems act on their behalf, under their oversight.

This foundation of trust is an important component of Blackbaud's mission to help social impact organizations deliver more impact with AI. Recent research from the Blackbaud Institute reveals that AI is now a common part of work across the social sector: most professionals in the field are using AI in their work, with half of them saying they use it more than they did the year prior. However, only a small percentage of organizations are realizing significant dividends on their AI investment; most organizations are held back by gaps between adoption and effective use.

Delivering trusted, transformational AI capabilities is one way Blackbaud is helping the sector close the gap between AI adoption and measurable impact. The other is with the AI Coalition for Social Impact, which last week opened the free, product-agnostic AI for Social Impact Certification Program, designed specifically to help social impact professionals adopt AI effectively and responsibly. Thousands of social impact professionals have already registered for the course.

Blackbaud will unveil full details of its reimagined connected system, along with more exciting product news and announcements, at bbcon 2026, taking place Sept. 29-Oct. 1 in Columbus, Ohio.

About Blackbaud
Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) is the world's leading provider of AI-powered solutions for social impact. Serving nonprofits, educational institutions, companies committed to corporate social responsibility, and individual change makers, Blackbaud propels impact at scale with the sector's most intelligent solutions for fundraising and engagement, education solutions, financial management and CSR and grantmaking. With the deepest expertise powered by the world's largest philanthropic data set, the most connected workflows, and the most powerful impact network, Blackbaud's solutions are building a future where resources are unleashed at the speed of need. Blackbaud has been recognized by Fast Company, Newsweek, Quartz, Forbes and more for AI innovation, responsible leadership and workplace excellence. Blackbaud has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, India and the United Kingdom, supporting users in 100+ countries. Learn more at www.blackbaud.com or follow us on X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Media Inquiries
[email protected] 

Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding expected benefits of products and product features. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud's investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.

SOURCE Blackbaud

Old National Bancorp (ONB - Free Report) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.65 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.62 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.53 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +4.84%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this holding company for Old National Bank would post earnings of $0.6 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.61, delivering a surprise of +1.67%.

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

Old National Bancorp, which belongs to the Zacks Banks - Midwest industry, posted revenues of $740.06 million for the quarter ended June 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.55%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $654.37 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two 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.

Old National Bancorp shares have added about 17.3% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 9.7%.

What's Next for Old National Bancorp?While Old National Bancorp has outperformed 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 Old National Bancorp was 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 the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.65 on $729.15 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $2.57 on $2.88 billion 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, Banks - Midwest is currently in the top 32% 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.

One other stock from the same industry, First Financial Corp. (THFF - Free Report) , is yet to report results for the quarter ended June 2026.

This holding company for First Financial Bank is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.71 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +8.9%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0.5% higher over the last 30 days to the current level.

First Financial Corp.'s revenues are expected to be $72.05 million, up 14.3% from the year-ago quarter.

Old National Bancorp NASDAQ: ONB reported what management described as a record second quarter for 2026, citing strong loan growth, fee income gains, expense control and continued capital returns to shareholders.

Chairman and CEO Jim Ryan said the quarter reflected “an exceptional” performance for the company, including record adjusted earnings per share, record net income and a record efficiency ratio. He said Old National generated an adjusted return on average tangible common equity of about 20% and an adjusted return on assets of 1.39%.

“These results show what happens when we stay focused on the fundamentals,” Ryan said, pointing to high-quality relationship growth, disciplined credit and expense management, investments in talent and technology, and tangible book value growth.

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Loan Growth and Pipeline Strength Drive Quarter Old National said end-of-period loans increased by $1 billion, or 8% annualized, during the quarter. Ryan said the increase was driven by “robust, high-quality commercial production.” Commercial production reached $3.5 billion, while the company’s period-end commercial pipeline rose to a record $5.6 billion.

John, who reviewed the company’s financial results on the call, said total loans grew 8.3% annualized from the prior quarter, with balanced growth across commercial real estate and commercial and industrial portfolios. He said production was diversified across the commercial book and was predominantly floating rate.

During the question-and-answer session, Tim said the company is beginning to see larger loan opportunities in its middle-market C&I business, particularly in growth markets. However, Ryan added that the average C&I loan in the bank remains below $1 million, underscoring that Old National still handles a large number of smaller commercial loans.

Management said loan growth expectations have improved, and the company now expects full-year loan growth of 6% to 8%, supported by year-to-date results and the current pipeline.

Fee Businesses Outperform Expectations Fee income was another area of strength. Ryan said the company saw broad-based gains across all fee businesses and described the diversification as intentional, saying Old National is seeking to build “a stronger, more balanced earnings engine” that is less dependent on net interest income.

Adjusted non-interest income was $140 million for the quarter, exceeding management’s guidance. John said all fee businesses performed better than expected. He noted that the “other income” line was elevated by approximately $10 million due to market value adjustments, higher bank-owned life insurance income and an asset recovery. While those items were described as core, John said the line should run closer to first-quarter levels for the rest of the year.

In response to an analyst question, John said wealth management has been “terrific,” investments have been good, mortgage performed solidly and capital markets remained strong. He said Old National is “reasonably bullish” on capital markets revenue because of the company’s commercial pipelines and production levels.

Looking longer term, John said aggregate fee income growth is likely a mid- to high-single-digit growth item, with some businesses, including wealth and capital markets, having potential to grow at double-digit rates.

Expenses Controlled as Efficiency Ratio Hits Record Old National reported GAAP second-quarter earnings per share of $0.65. Excluding $12.1 million in merger-related expenses and a $13.2 million valuation gain tied to the settlement of the Bremer pension plan, adjusted earnings per share were also $0.65.

Adjusted non-interest expense totaled $360 million. John said expenses remained well controlled and drove positive operating leverage both sequentially and year over year. Ryan said the company’s adjusted efficiency ratio was 45.2%, marking the seventh straight quarter of positive year-over-year operating leverage.

Ryan said Old National is investing in technology, artificial intelligence and process improvements to make the company more scalable while maintaining expense discipline.

Net Interest Income Outlook Holds Steady Management left net interest income guidance unchanged, while noting it had been updated for the impact of a subordinated debt issuance. John said second-quarter net interest margin was affected by two basis points from the full-quarter impact of subordinated debt issued in late January and lower SOFR rates. Without those factors, he said the margin would have been up slightly.

John said net interest income growth should be supported by strong asset generation, stable funding costs, fixed-asset repricing and earning-asset remix opportunities. He said new money yields on securities are running about 100 basis points above back-book yields, while fixed-to-fixed loan repricing offers about 60 basis points of opportunity.

During the Q&A, John said management sees “more opportunities than challenges” in the second half of the year, citing higher average earning assets, repricing opportunities, the potential for SOFR to become a tailwind, remix opportunities and additional calendar days in both the third and fourth quarters.

Old National said total deposits increased 3.4% annualized, led by commercial and public fund growth, partly offset by seasonal retail tax outflows. Non-interest-bearing deposits remained 23% of total deposits. John said total deposit costs decreased by one basis point during the quarter, even as the company continued to pursue new client acquisition in a competitive deposit environment.

Credit and Capital Remain Management Priorities Credit quality improved in several areas. Ryan said non-accrual loans declined by $50 million, or 10%, from the prior quarter. John said non-accrual loans fell to 91 basis points of total loans, while criticized and classified loans decreased by $109 million during the quarter.

Net charge-offs were 26 basis points, or 22 basis points excluding charge-offs on purchased credit deteriorated loans. John said the allowance for credit losses to total loans, including the reserve for unfunded commitments, was 121 basis points, down one basis point from the prior quarter, primarily due to charge-offs on PCD loans and improved credit quality.

Old National’s capital position remained strong. The company’s CET1 ratio was 11.09%, and tangible book value per share increased 14% year over year. John said tangible book value per share grew 11% annualized from the prior quarter, even as the company absorbed Bremer-related charges, supported better-than-expected balance sheet growth and returned capital.

The company returned $163 million to shareholders in the quarter through dividends and share repurchases. That included $107 million of common stock repurchases, representing 4.4 million shares. John said Old National has $277 million remaining under its buyback program and expects to use the remaining authorization opportunistically through the plan period ending in February 2027.

Asked about capital levels, John said the company is comfortable with its position and has enough capital to support organic growth while continuing capital returns. Ryan said the company is balancing organic investment, tangible book value growth, strong capital ratios and shareholder returns.

Ryan closed by saying Old National does not need to rely on acquisitions to meet its goals and remains focused on organic growth, client relationships, investments in people and platforms, risk management and long-term shareholder value.

About Old National Bancorp (NASDAQ:ONB)Old National Bancorp NASDAQ: ONB is the bank holding company for Old National Bank, a regional financial services firm headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. Through its network of community banking offices, the company provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its offerings include checking and savings accounts, personal and business loans, and deposit products designed to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses, and larger corporate customers.

In addition to traditional banking, Old National Bancorp delivers specialty financial services such as treasury management, wealth management, mortgage loan production, and insurance solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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Wall Street expects a year-over-year decline in earnings on higher revenues when Humana (HUM - Free Report) reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. While this widely-known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company's earnings picture, a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations, it's worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis health insurer is expected to post quarterly earnings of $6.22 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -0.8%.

Revenues are expected to be $40.65 billion, up 25.5% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 26.64% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

Investors should keep in mind that an aggregate change may not always reflect the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Humana?For Humana, the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +1.71%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #1.

So, this combination indicates that Humana will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Humana would post earnings of $9.97 per share when it actually produced earnings of $10.31, delivering a surprise of +3.41%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Humana appears a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

It doesn't matter your age or experience: taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for all investors. Luckily, Zacks Premium offers several different ways to do both.

The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.

Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.

Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.

Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

This totals more than 800 top-rated stocks, and it can be overwhelming to try and pick the best stocks for you and your portfolio.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

You want to make sure you're buying stocks with the highest likelihood of success, and to do that, you'll need to pick stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you like a stock that only has a #3 (Hold) rank, it should also have Scores of A or B to guarantee as much upside potential as possible.

As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Arista Networks (ANET - Free Report) Santa Clara, CA-based Arista Networks, Inc. is engaged in providing cloud networking solutions for data centers and cloud computingenvironments. The company offers 10/25/40/50/100 Gigabit Ethernet switches and routers optimized for next-generation data center networks. Arista uses multiple silicon architectures across its products. At the core of the company’s cloud networking solutions is the Linux-based Extensible Operating System (EOS), which was architected to be fully programmable and highly modular.

ANET is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Additionally, the company could be a top pick for growth investors. ANET has a Growth Style Score of A, forecasting year-over-year earnings growth of 22.2% for the current fiscal year.

For fiscal 2026, two analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.03 to $3.64 per share. ANET boasts an average earnings surprise of +8.3%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Growth and VGM Style Scores, ANET should be on investors' short list.

Penske Automotive (PAG - Free Report) is expected to deliver a year-over-year decline in earnings on higher revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. This widely-known consensus outlook gives a good sense of the company's earnings picture, but how the actual results compare to these estimates is a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call, it's worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis auto dealership chain is expected to post quarterly earnings of $3.38 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -10.6%.

Revenues are expected to be $7.93 billion, up 3.4% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0.21% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

Investors should keep in mind that an aggregate change may not always reflect the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Penske?For Penske, the Most Accurate Estimate is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bearish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of -0.74%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #3.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Penske will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?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, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Penske would post earnings of $2.91 per share when it actually produced earnings of $3.05, delivering a surprise of +4.81%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Penske doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

The market expects Eagle Materials (EXP - Free Report) to deliver a year-over-year decline in earnings on lower revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. This widely-known consensus outlook is important in assessing the company's earnings picture, but a powerful factor that might influence its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call, it's worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis maker of gypsum wallboard and cement is expected to post quarterly earnings of $3.26 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -13.3%.

Revenues are expected to be $628.6 million, down 1% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 1.19% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

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.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Eagle Materials?For Eagle Materials, the Most Accurate Estimate is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bearish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of -4.29%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #3.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Eagle Materials will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Eagle Materials would post earnings of $1.47 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.91, delivering a surprise of +29.93%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Eagle Materials doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania--(Newsfile Corp. - July 22, 2026) - National plaintiffs' law firm Berger Montague PC announces a class action lawsuit against AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV) ("AeroVironment" or the "Company") on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired AeroVironment common stock during the period from June 25, 2025 through March 10, 2026 (the "Class Period").

Investor Deadline: Investors who purchased or acquired AeroVironment common stock during the Class Period may, no later than July 27, 2026, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. To learn your rights, CLICK HERE.

AeroVironment, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, is a leading American defense technology company that designs and manufactures autonomous systems, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), loitering munitions, and space and directed-energy technologies in support of the U.S. Department of Defense, allied governments, and commercial clients worldwide.

According to the complaint, Defendants concealed that: (i) the Company faced a far greater risk of near-term competition from rival vendors for its work under the U.S. Space Force's Satellite Communication Augmentation Resource ("SCAR") program than it had disclosed, particularly given the Space Force's broader push to modernize the Satellite Control Network ("SCN"); and (ii) in light of this undisclosed competitive exposure, Defendants had painted an unrealistically optimistic picture of AeroVironment's business and financial trajectory.

The truth began to emerge on January 20, 2026, when AeroVironment announced that the U.S. government had issued a stop work order on the Company's agreement to deliver BADGER systems to the SCAR program. On this news, AeroVironment's stock price fell $61.97 per share, or 15.77%, to close at $330.89 per share on January 20, 2026.

Further disclosures followed on March 2, 2026, when Space News published a report revealing that the Space Force had reopened the SCAR program and was actively reconsidering its path forward. The report included remarks from Colonel Owen Stevens, the director of contracting at the Space Rapid Capabilities Office - the office responsible for overseeing SCAR - who indicated that the Space Force had been engaging with senior acquisition leadership and would be pursuing a new acquisition strategy for the program. On this news, AeroVironment's stock price fell $43.93 per share, or 17.42%, to close at $208.32 per share on March 2, 2026.

Then, on March 10, 2026, AeroVironment announced its financial results for the third quarter of 2026. Among other items, AeroVironment reported an operating loss of $179.0 million, compared to an operating loss of $3.1 million for the same period in fiscal year 2025 - a deterioration driven in significant part by a $151.3 million goodwill impairment in the Company's space division following the stop work order on its BADGER systems. AeroVironment further disclosed that the Space Force had terminated the Company's SCAR contract, requiring AeroVironment to "recompete" for the program. On this news, AeroVironment's stock price fell $13.84 per share, or 6.24%, to close at $207.73 per share on March 11, 2026.

If you are an AeroVironment investor and would like to learn more about this action, CLICK HERE or please contact Berger Montague: Andrew Abramowitz at [email protected] or (215) 875-3015, or Caitlin Adorni at [email protected] or (267) 764-4865.

About Berger Montague
Berger Montague is one of the nation's preeminent law firms focusing on complex civil litigation, class actions, and mass torts in federal and state courts throughout the United States. With more than $2.4 billion in 2025 post-trial judgments alone, the Firm is a leader in the fields of complex litigation, antitrust, consumer protection, defective products, environmental law, employment law, securities, and whistleblower cases, among many other practice areas. For over 55 years, Berger Montague has played leading roles in precedent-setting cases and has recovered over $50 billion for its clients and the classes they have represented. Berger Montague is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in Chicago; Malvern, PA; Minneapolis; San Diego; San Francisco; Toronto, Canada; Washington, D.C., and Wilmington, DE.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/306035

Source: Berger Montague

Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.

Contact Us

New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - July 22, 2026) - Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against AeroVironment, Inc. ("AeroVironment" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: AVAV) on behalf of investors that purchased or otherwise acquired AeroVironment securities between June 25, 2025 and June 18, 2026 (the "Class Period").

CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE CASE

If you are an investor in AeroVironment and have suffered losses, you may CLICK HERE to contact us. You may also contact Kaplan Fox by emailing [email protected] or by calling (646) 315-9003.

DEADLINE REMINDER: If you are a member of the proposed Class, you may move the court no later than July 27, 2026 to serve as a lead plaintiff for the purported class. If you have losses we encourage you to contact us to learn more about the lead plaintiff process. You need not seek to become a lead plaintiff in order to share in any possible recovery.

On January 20, 2026, before markets opened, the Company reported in an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that "upon mutual agreement" of AeroVironment and the U.S. Government, "the U.S. Government issued a stop work order on the Company's Other Transaction Agreement for the delivery of BADGER phased array antenna systems to support the Satellite Communication Augmentation Resource ("SCAR") program." According to the filing, "[t]he stop work order allows for the parties to negotiate an amended agreement for the future of the SCAR program under new requirements for the program, which amendment is expected to be a firm-fixed price agreement. The Company expects to continue to deliver capabilities and products for the SCAR program."

Following this news, the price of AeroVironment stock declined $61.97 per share, or 15.77%, to close at $330.89 per share on January 20, 2026.

On March 10, 2026, after market, AeroVironment issued a press release, announcing third quarter 2026 financial results. The Company reported "operating loss of $179.0 million, compared to an operating loss of $3.1 million for the same period in fiscal year 2025." According to the complaint, "[t]hese financial results reflected the impact of a $151.3 million goodwill impairment in the Company's space division after the stop work order on the Company's BADGER systems built for the SCAR program." Additionally, according to the complaint "AeroVironment also reported that the U.S. Space Force had terminated the Company's contract concerning the SCAR program, and as a result, it would have to 'recompete' for the SCAR program."

Following this news, the price of AeroVironment stock fell $13.84 per share, or 6.24%, to close at $207.73 per share on March 11, 2026.

The complaint alleges, among other things, that throughout the Class Period, "Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) AeroVironment understated the likelihood that it would imminently face competition from other vendors for the work it performed in connection with the SCAR program and the U.S. Space Force's ongoing efforts to modernize the SCN; (ii) accordingly, Defendants overstated AeroVironment's business and financial prospects; and (iii) as a result, Defendants' public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times."

WHY CONTACT KAPLAN FOX?

Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP is a nationally recognized law firm focused on complex litigation, with offices in New York, Oakland, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Jersey. Founded in 1956, the firm has spent more than 50 years prosecuting securities, antitrust, and consumer protection actions in federal and state courts nationwide, recovering more than $10 billion for clients and the classes it has represented.

Kaplan Fox is widely regarded as one of the nation's premier plaintiffs' securities litigation firms and has received recognition from Chambers and Partners, Benchmark Litigation, Super Lawyers, and Lawdragon. Serving as lead or co-lead counsel in many landmark cases, the firm has secured some of the largest recoveries in the history of securities litigation, including a $2.425 billion recovery on behalf of Bank of America shareholders in In re Bank of America—the largest recovery ever obtained for claims under Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act—$800 million recovered for the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System and other pension funds in ATRS v. Allianz Global Investors, and a $475 million settlement in In re Merrill Lynch.

For decades, Kaplan Fox has represented public pension funds, institutional investors, businesses, and individuals in high-stakes litigation. Through its successful advocacy and precedent-setting victories, the firm has helped shape important areas of securities and corporate law while advancing accountability and protecting investor interests.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

If you have any questions about this Notice, your rights, or your interests, please contact:

Contacting or submitting information to Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP does not create an attorney-client relationship, nor an obligation on the part of Kaplan Fox to retain you as a client.

https://www.kaplanfox.com/case/aerovironment-inc-class-action-alert-learn-more-now/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/305970

Source: Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP

Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.

Contact Us

NEW YORK, July 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against AeroVironment, Inc. (“AeroVironment” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: AVAV) on behalf of investors that purchased or otherwise acquired AeroVironment securities between June 25, 2025 and June 18, 2026 (the “Class Period”).

CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE CASE

If you are an investor in AeroVironment and have suffered losses, you may CLICK HERE to contact us. You may also contact Kaplan Fox by emailing [email protected] or by calling (646) 315-9003.

DEADLINE REMINDER: If you are a member of the proposed Class, you may move the court no later than July 27, 2026 to serve as a lead plaintiff for the purported class. If you have losses we encourage you to contact us to learn more about the lead plaintiff process. You need not seek to become a lead plaintiff in order to share in any possible recovery.

On January 20, 2026, before markets opened, the Company reported in an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that “upon mutual agreement” of AeroVironment and the U.S. Government, “the U.S. Government issued a stop work order on the Company’s Other Transaction Agreement for the delivery of BADGER phased array antenna systems to support the Satellite Communication Augmentation Resource (“SCAR”) program.” According to the filing, “[t]he stop work order allows for the parties to negotiate an amended agreement for the future of the SCAR program under new requirements for the program, which amendment is expected to be a firm-fixed price agreement. The Company expects to continue to deliver capabilities and products for the SCAR program.”

Following this news, the price of AeroVironment stock declined $61.97 per share, or 15.77%, to close at $330.89 per share on January 20, 2026.

On March 10, 2026, after market, AeroVironment issued a press release, announcing third quarter 2026 financial results. The Company reported “operating loss of $179.0 million, compared to an operating loss of $3.1 million for the same period in fiscal year 2025.” According to the complaint, “[t]hese financial results reflected the impact of a $151.3 million goodwill impairment in the Company’s space division after the stop work order on the Company’s BADGER systems built for the SCAR program.” Additionally, according to the complaint “AeroVironment also reported that the U.S. Space Force had terminated the Company’s contract concerning the SCAR program, and as a result, it would have to ‘recompete’ for the SCAR program.”

Following this news, the price of AeroVironment stock fell $13.84 per share, or 6.24%, to close at $207.73 per share on March 11, 2026.

The complaint alleges, among other things, that throughout the Class Period, “Defendants

made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) AeroVironment understated the likelihood that it would imminently face competition from other vendors for the work it performed in connection with the SCAR program and the U.S. Space Force’s ongoing efforts to modernize the SCN; (ii) accordingly, Defendants overstated AeroVironment’s business and financial prospects; and (iii) as a result, Defendants’ public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.”

WHY CONTACT KAPLAN FOX?

Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP is a nationally recognized law firm focused on complex litigation, with offices in New York, Oakland, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Jersey. Founded in 1956, the firm has spent more than 50 years prosecuting securities, antitrust, and consumer protection actions in federal and state courts nationwide, recovering more than $10 billion for clients and the classes it has represented.

Kaplan Fox is widely regarded as one of the nation's premier plaintiffs' securities litigation firms and has received recognition from Chambers and Partners, Benchmark Litigation, Super Lawyers, and Lawdragon. Serving as lead or co-lead counsel in many landmark cases, the firm has secured some of the largest recoveries in the history of securities litigation, including a $2.425 billion recovery on behalf of Bank of America shareholders in In re Bank of America—the largest recovery ever obtained for claims under Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act—$800 million recovered for the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System and other pension funds in ATRS v. Allianz Global Investors, and a $475 million settlement in In re Merrill Lynch.

For decades, Kaplan Fox has represented public pension funds, institutional investors, businesses, and individuals in high-stakes litigation. Through its successful advocacy and precedent-setting victories, the firm has helped shape important areas of securities and corporate law while advancing accountability and protecting investor interests.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

If you have any questions about this Notice, your rights, or your interests, please contact:

CONTACT:
Pamela A. Mayer
KAPLAN FOX & KILSHEIMER LLP
800 Third Avenue, 38th Floor
New York, New York 10022
(646) 315-9003
[email protected]

Laurence D. King
KAPLAN FOX & KILSHEIMER LLP
1999 Harrison Street, Suite 1501
Oakland, California 94612
(415) 772-4704
[email protected]

Contacting or submitting information to Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP does not create an attorney-client relationship, nor an obligation on the part of Kaplan Fox to retain you as a client.

https://www.kaplanfox.com/case/aerovironment-inc-class-action-alert-learn-more-now/

Wall Street expects a year-over-year increase in earnings on higher revenues when Hayward Holdings, Inc. (HAYW - Free Report) reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. While this widely-known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company's earnings picture, a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The stock might move higher if these key numbers top expectations in the upcoming earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call, it's worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.25 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +4.2%.

Revenues are expected to be $315.5 million, up 5.3% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

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.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. This insight is at the core of our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction).

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Hayward Holdings?For Hayward Holdings, the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +1.35%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #4.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Hayward Holdings will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?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, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Hayward Holdings would post earnings of $0.11 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.13, delivering a surprise of +18.18%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Hayward Holdings doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

An Industry Player's Expected ResultsAnother stock from the Zacks Electronics - Miscellaneous Products industry, Teradyne (TER - Free Report) , is soon expected to post earnings of $2.04 per share for the quarter ended June 2026. This estimate indicates a year-over-year change of +257.9%. Revenues for the quarter are expected to be $1.22 billion, up 86.4% from the year-ago quarter.

The consensus EPS estimate for Teradyne has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. However, a higher Most Accurate Estimate has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +0.59%.

This Earnings ESP, combined with its Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), suggests that Teradyne will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate. The company beat consensus EPS estimates in each of the trailing four quarters.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

[url="]Morningstar, Inc.[/url] (NASDAQ: MORN), a leading provider of independent investment insights and market data, today introduced the [url="]Morningstar U

For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.

Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.

Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreGrowth investors, on the other hand, are more concerned with a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score examines things like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will experience sustainable growth over time.

Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.

Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To maximize your returns, you want to buy stocks with the highest probability of success. This means picking stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you find yourself looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, make sure they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.

Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Hasbro (HAS - Free Report) Hasbro, Inc., based in Pawtucket, RI, designs, manufactures and markets games, toys and licensed products. Founded in 1923, the company offers traditional, high-tech and digital play experiences across owned and partner brands.

HAS is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Momentum investors should take note of this Consumer Discretionary stock. HAS has a Momentum Style Score of A, and shares are up 7.1% over the past four weeks.

For fiscal 2026, four analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.11 to $6.04 per share. HAS boasts an average earnings surprise of +23.6%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, HAS should be on investors' short list.

New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - July 22, 2026) - Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against PicS N.V. ("PicS" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: PICS) on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased PicS Class A common stock in and/or traceable to PicS' initial public offering ("IPO") on or around January 30, 2026.

CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE CASE

If you are an investor in PicS and have suffered losses, you may CLICK HERE to contact us. You may also contact Kaplan Fox by emailing [email protected] or by calling (646) 315-9003.

DEADLINE REMINDER: If you are a member of the proposed Class, you may move the court no later than August 4, 2026 to serve as a lead plaintiff for the purported class. If you have losses we encourage you to contact us to learn more about the lead plaintiff process. You need not seek to become a lead plaintiff in order to share in any possible recovery.

On or around January 30, 2026, PicS concluded its IPO, selling approximately 22.9 million shares of Class A common stock at $19 per share.

On March 19, 2026, less than three months after the IPO, PicS released its fourth quarter and full year 2025 financial results, which ended December 31, 2025 - before the IPO. The Company revealed that in December 2025, as part of the Company's "annual review of expected credit loss parameters," the Company had "implemented a stricter policy to accelerate the classification of renegotiated non-performing exposures from Stage 2 to Stage 3." Consequently, "R$590 million of Stage 2 portfolio balances were reclassified to Stage 3, resulting in an ECL increase of R$88 million in the quarter." Stage 3 is the Company's highest risk category for its credit portfolio, or "credit impaired."

On March 19, 2026, the price of PicS shares fell $3.56 per share, or 22.5%, to close at $12.27 per share.

The complaint alleges, among other things, that in connection with the IPO, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that "(a) that PicS had conducted an evaluation of its credit evaluation procedures in December 2025 and determined that such procedures were deficient and in need of enhancement; (b) that, as a result of the new procedures the Company had implemented in December 2025, PicS had reclassified approximately R$590 million of exposures previously classified as Stage 2 to Stage 3, leading to an incremental ECL charge of R$88 million in the three months ended December 31, 2025; (c) that PicS had experienced a heightened, but unreported, Stage 3 formation rate of more than 7% in the fourth quarter of 2025 that deviated substantially from the historical results and trends provided in the Offering Documents; (d) that the Offering Documents had materially overstated the quality and ability of the Company's credit models and user data to inform the Company's underwriting practices and to allow PicS to timely and effectively monitor, assess, and identify adverse credit events, credit risks, and credit deterioration across its portfolio; and (e) that PicS suffered from degradations in customer credit quality and heightened risks of default and loan impairment as a result of its entrance into materially riskier business lines leading up to the IPO, resulting in undisclosed adverse financial and operational trends such as heightened incidents of default, which predated the IPO and were internally projected by PicS to continue to worsen following the IPO, materially impairing the Company's business, operations, and financial results."

The complaint alleges that as of June 4, 2026, PicS Class A common stock fell to a low of less than $9 per share, representing a more than 50% decline from the $19 per share IPO price.

WHY CONTACT KAPLAN FOX?

Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP is a nationally recognized law firm focused on complex litigation, with offices in New York, Oakland, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Jersey. Founded in 1956, the firm has spent more than 50 years prosecuting securities, antitrust, and consumer protection actions in federal and state courts nationwide, recovering more than $10 billion for clients and the classes it has represented.

Kaplan Fox is widely regarded as one of the nation's premier plaintiffs' securities litigation firms and has received recognition from Chambers and Partners, Benchmark Litigation, Super Lawyers, and Lawdragon. Serving as lead or co-lead counsel in many landmark cases, the firm has secured some of the largest recoveries in the history of securities litigation, including a $2.425 billion recovery on behalf of Bank of America shareholders in In re Bank of America—the largest recovery ever obtained for claims under Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act—$800 million recovered for the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System and other pension funds in ATRS v. Allianz Global Investors, and a $475 million settlement in In re Merrill Lynch.

For decades, Kaplan Fox has represented public pension funds, institutional investors, businesses, and individuals in high-stakes litigation. Through its successful advocacy and precedent-setting victories, the firm has helped shape important areas of securities and corporate law while advancing accountability and protecting investor interests.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

If you have any questions about this Notice, your rights, or your interests, please contact:

Contacting or submitting information to Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP does not create an attorney-client relationship, nor an obligation on the part of Kaplan Fox to retain you as a client.

https://www.kaplanfox.com/case/pics-n-v-class-action-alert-learn-more-now/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/305976

Source: Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP

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The upcoming report from Albertsons Companies, Inc. (ACI - Free Report) is expected to reveal quarterly earnings of $0.55 per share, indicating no change from the year-ago quarter. Analysts forecast revenues of $24.81 billion, representing a decline of 0.3% year over year.

The current level reflects an upward revision of 0.4% in the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter over the past 30 days. This demonstrates how the analysts covering the stock have collectively reappraised their initial projections over this period.

Before a company reveals its earnings, it is vital to take into account any changes in earnings projections. These revisions play a pivotal role in predicting the possible reactions of investors toward the stock. Multiple empirical studies have consistently shown a strong association between trends in earnings estimates and the short-term price movements of a stock.

While investors typically use consensus earnings and revenue estimates as a yardstick to evaluate the company's quarterly performance, scrutinizing analysts' projections for some of the company's key metrics can offer a more comprehensive perspective.

With that in mind, let's delve into the average projections of some Albertsons Companies metrics that are commonly tracked and projected by analysts on Wall Street.

The combined assessment of analysts suggests that 'Revenues- Fuel' will likely reach $1.36 billion. The estimate indicates a year-over-year change of +10.3%.

Analysts' assessment points toward 'Number of stores at end of quarter' reaching 2,242 . The estimate is in contrast to the year-ago figure of 2,264 .

Analysts expect 'Total Square Footage - Retail Square Feet' to come in at 111.85 million. The estimate compares to the year-ago value of 112.80 million.

View all Key Company Metrics for Albertsons Companies here>>>

Shares of Albertsons Companies have experienced a change of +5.8% in the past month compared to the +0.3% move of the Zacks S&P 500 composite. With a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), ACI is expected to mirror the overall market performance in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .

Wall Street expects a year-over-year increase in earnings on higher revenues when Newmark Group (NMRK - Free Report) reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. While this widely-known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company's earnings picture, a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations, it's worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis provider of commercial real estate services is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.39 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +25.8%.

Revenues are expected to be $863.15 million, up 13.7% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 1.02% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

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.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

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. 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.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A 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). 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.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. 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).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Newmark Group?For Newmark Group, the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +14.29%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #2.

So, this combination indicates that Newmark Group will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that Newmark Group would post earnings of $0.27 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.33, delivering a surprise of +22.22%.

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

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Newmark Group appears a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

An Industry Player's Expected ResultsAmong the stocks in the Zacks Real Estate - Operations industry, Newmark Group (NMRK - Free Report) , is soon expected to post earnings of $0.39 per share for the quarter ended June 2026. This estimate indicates a year-over-year change of +25.8%. This quarter's revenue is expected to be $863.15 million, up 13.7% from the year-ago quarter.

The consensus EPS estimate for Newmark Group has been revised 1% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. However, a higher Most Accurate Estimate has resulted in an Earnings ESP of +14.29%.

When combined with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), this Earnings ESP indicates that Newmark Group will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate. The company beat consensus EPS estimates in each of the trailing four quarters.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Corpay, Inc., (NYSE: CPAY) the corporate payments company, today announced that the Company will host a conference call to discuss second quarter 2026 financia

The Oils-Energy group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Par Petroleum (PARR - Free Report) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Oils-Energy peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Par Petroleum is one of 252 individual stocks in the Oils-Energy sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #10 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

The Zacks Rank is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Par Petroleum is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PARR's full-year earnings has moved 27.5% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that PARR has returned about 128.8% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Oils-Energy sector has returned an average of 26.7% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Par Petroleum is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

One other Oils-Energy stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Venture Global (VG - Free Report) . The stock is up 106.2% year-to-date.

The consensus estimate for Venture Global's current year EPS has increased 10.8% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Par Petroleum belongs to the Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry, a group that includes 16 individual stocks and currently sits at #40 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 57.1% so far this year, so PARR is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

In contrast, Venture Global falls under the Oil and Gas - Exploration and Production - United States industry. Currently, this industry has 34 stocks and is ranked #210. Since the beginning of the year, the industry has moved +25.2%.

Par Petroleum and Venture Global could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Oils-Energy stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

NEW YORK, July 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds Verra Mobility Corporation (“Verra” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: VRRM) investors of the August 4, 2026 deadline involving a securities fraud class action lawsuit commenced against the Company.

Should You Join The Verra Mobility Class Action Lawsuit:

Do you, or did you, own shares of Verra Mobility Corporation (NASDAQ: VRRM)?
Did you purchase your shares between February 24, 2026 and May 26, 2026, inclusive?
Did you lose money in your investment in Verra Mobility Corporation?
Investors are encouraged to act promptly and submit a form at Verra Mobility Corporation Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or [email protected].

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff for the Class, you must file papers by August 4, 2026. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on other class members’ behalf in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn’t require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.

All representation is on a contingency fee basis. Shareholders pay no fees or expenses.

About The Lawsuit:

A lawsuit was filed on behalf of investors (the “Class”) who purchased or acquired the common stock of Verra between February 24, 2026 and May 26, 2026, inclusive, alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its senior officers.

The lawsuit alleges that defendants made materially false and misleading statements and omissions regarding the Company’s business operations, growth prospects, and financial stability. As a result of these alleged misrepresentations, Verra common stock traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period. When the truth was disclosed, investors allegedly suffered significant losses.

About Bernstein Liebhard:

Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal’s “Plaintiffs’ Hot List” thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. © 2026 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

Contact Information:

Peter Allocco
Investor Relations Manager
Bernstein Liebhard LLP
https://www.bernlieb.com
(212) 951-2030
[email protected]

Axon Enterprise (AXON - Free Report) is one of the stocks most watched by Zacks.com visitors lately. So, it might be a good idea to review some of the factors that might affect the near-term performance of the stock.

Over the past month, shares of this maker of stun guns and body cameras have returned +18%, compared to the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +0.3% change. During this period, the Zacks Aerospace - Defense Equipment industry, which Axon falls in, has lost 8.9%. The key question now is: What could be the stock's future direction?

While media releases or rumors about a substantial change in a company's business prospects usually make its stock 'trending' and lead to an immediate price change, there are always some fundamental facts that eventually dominate the buy-and-hold decision-making.

Revisions to Earnings EstimatesRather than focusing on anything else, we at Zacks prioritize evaluating the change in a company's earnings projection. This is because we believe the fair value for its stock is determined by the present value of its future stream of earnings.

Our analysis is essentially based on how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to take the latest business trends into account. When earnings estimates for a company go up, the fair value for its stock goes up as well. And when a stock's fair value is higher than its current market price, investors tend to buy the stock, resulting in its price moving upward. Because of this, empirical studies indicate a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and short-term stock price movements.

Axon is expected to post earnings of $1.89 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -10.9%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -0.3%.

The consensus earnings estimate of $7.83 for the current fiscal year indicates a year-over-year change of +14.3%. This estimate has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.

For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $10.64 indicates a change of +35.9% from what Axon is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has remained unchanged.

With an impressive externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool -- the Zacks Rank -- is a more conclusive indicator of a stock's near-term price performance, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Axon.

The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:

12 Month EPS

Revenue Growth ForecastWhile earnings growth is arguably the most superior indicator of a company's financial health, nothing happens as such if a business isn't able to grow its revenues. After all, it's nearly impossible for a company to increase its earnings for an extended period without increasing its revenues. So, it's important to know a company's potential revenue growth.

In the case of Axon, the consensus sales estimate of $868.35 million for the current quarter points to a year-over-year change of +29.9%. The $3.65 billion and $4.6 billion estimates for the current and next fiscal years indicate changes of +31.5% and +25.8%, respectively.

Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryAxon reported revenues of $807.34 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +33.7%. EPS of $1.61 for the same period compares with $1.41 a year ago.

Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $780.58 million, the reported revenues represent a surprise of +3.43%. The EPS surprise was -3.01%.

Over the last four quarters, Axon surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times. The company topped consensus revenue estimates each time over this period.

ValuationNo investment decision can be efficient without considering a stock's valuation. Whether a stock's current price rightly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects is an essential determinant of its future price performance.

Comparing the current value of a company's valuation multiples, such as its price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), to its own historical values helps ascertain whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, whereas comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of how reasonable its stock price is.

As part of the Zacks Style Scores system, the Zacks Value Style Score (which evaluates both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics) organizes stocks into five groups ranging from A to F (A is better than B; B is better than C; and so on), making it helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.

Axon is graded F on this front, indicating that it is trading at a premium to its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.

ConclusionThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Axon. However, its Zacks Rank #3 does suggest that it may perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

NEW YORK, July 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds Calix, Inc. (“Calix” or the “Company”) (NYSE: CALX) investors of the July 27, 2026 deadline involving a securities fraud class action lawsuit commenced against the Company. Should You Join The Calix Class Action Lawsuit : Do you, or did you, own shares of Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX)?

Collaboration drives better coordination, visibility and continuity of care for individuals reentering the community

, /PRNewswire/ -- Kyndryl (NYSE: KD), a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services, today announced its role in supporting a growing, multi-county initiative in Arizona focused on reducing recidivism by helping formerly incarcerated individuals successfully reintegrate into mainstream society. The aim is to improve long‑term public safety and create healthier, more stable communities.

Yavapai County serves as the flagship implementation, having deployed a modern, multi-jurisdiction re-entry platform with support from Kyndryl Consult. Systems in Mohave and Navajo counties are expected to go live in the coming months. Pinal and Coconino counties have also committed to the initiative, reflecting growing interest in a more integrated, statewide approach.

"Strengthening re-entry services requires close coordination across justice, health and community partners," said Beya Thayer, executive director behavioral health services & the Yavapai Justice & Mental Health Coalition, Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. "Kyndryl's advisory and technology consulting expertise helped us design workflows that better support people returning to the community, and their delivery team worked alongside us to put those plans into practice. That combination helps us manage services more effectively to connect to the right support at the right time."

"We are proud to support Arizona counties in strengthening this critical part of their public safety and community health systems," said Anita Mikus, managing director of U.S. state and local government, Kyndryl. "This work is about people — making sure individuals returning to the community have a clearer path to the services and support they need to rebuild their lives. By helping connect systems and simplify how agencies work together, we can make that support more accessible, more timely and more effective."

Across participating counties, Kyndryl is supporting the design and deployment of solutions that help centralize and automate key re-entry processes — including intake screenings, referrals, document sharing and outcome tracking. These solutions help re-entry coordinators and agency partners to identify individuals with greater support needs earlier, align efforts with service providers and track results.

The initiative reflects a broader shift by state and local government agencies toward more connected, data-driven approaches to societal re-entry, where closer collaboration among law enforcement, courts, behavioral health providers and community organizations can help improve program effectiveness and long-term outcomes.

About Kyndryl
Kyndryl (NYSE: KD) is a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services, offering advisory, implementation and managed service capabilities to thousands of customers in more than 60 countries. As the world's largest IT infrastructure services provider, the company designs, builds, manages and modernizes the complex information systems that the world depends on every day. For more information, visit www.kyndryl.com.

Kyndryl Press Contact
[email protected]

SOURCE Kyndryl

The recommendations of Wall Street analysts are often relied on by investors when deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock. Media reports about these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts changing their ratings often affect a stock's price. Do they really matter, though?

Let's take a look at what these Wall Street heavyweights have to say about AutoZone (AZO - Free Report) before we discuss the reliability of brokerage recommendations and how to use them to your advantage.

AutoZone currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.45, on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 28 brokerage firms. An ABR of 1.45 approximates between Strong Buy and Buy.

Of the 28 recommendations that derive the current ABR, 21 are Strong Buy and one is Buy. Strong Buy and Buy respectively account for 75% and 3.6% of all recommendations.

Brokerage Recommendation Trends for AZO

Check price target & stock forecast for AutoZone here>>>

While the ABR calls for buying AutoZone, it may not be wise to make an investment decision solely based on this information. Several studies have shown limited to no success of brokerage recommendations in guiding investors to pick stocks with the best price increase potential.

Are you wondering why? The vested interest of brokerage firms in a stock they cover often results in a strong positive bias of their analysts in rating it. Our research shows that for every "Strong Sell" recommendation, brokerage firms assign five "Strong Buy" recommendations.

In other words, their interests aren't always aligned with retail investors, rarely indicating where the price of a stock could actually be heading. Therefore, the best use of this information could be validating your own research or an indicator that has proven to be highly successful in predicting a stock's price movement.

Zacks Rank, our proprietary stock rating tool with an impressive externally audited track record, categorizes stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), and is an effective indicator of a stock's price performance in the near future. Therefore, using the ABR to validate the Zacks Rank could be an efficient way of making a profitable investment decision.

Zacks Rank Should Not Be Confused With ABRAlthough both Zacks Rank and ABR are displayed in a range of 1--5, they are different measures altogether.

Broker recommendations are the sole basis for calculating the ABR, which is typically displayed in decimals (such as 1.28). The Zacks Rank, on the other hand, is a quantitative model designed to harness the power of earnings estimate revisions. It is displayed in whole numbers -- 1 to 5.

It has been and continues to be the case that analysts employed by brokerage firms are overly optimistic with their recommendations. Because of their employers' vested interests, these analysts issue more favorable ratings than their research would support, misguiding investors far more often than helping them.

On the other hand, earnings estimate revisions are at the core of the Zacks Rank. And empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

In addition, the different Zacks Rank grades are applied proportionately to all stocks for which brokerage analysts provide current-year earnings estimates. In other words, this tool always maintains a balance among its five ranks.

Another key difference between the ABR and Zacks Rank is freshness. The ABR is not necessarily up-to-date when you look at it. But, since brokerage analysts keep revising their earnings estimates to account for a company's changing business trends, and their actions get reflected in the Zacks Rank quickly enough, it is always timely in indicating future price movements.

Is AZO a Good Investment?In terms of earnings estimate revisions for AutoZone, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has remained unchanged over the past month at $150.51.

Analysts' steady views regarding the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by an unchanged consensus estimate, could be a legitimate reason for the stock to perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for AutoZone. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>

It may therefore be prudent to be a little cautious with the Buy-equivalent ABR for AutoZone.