CHICAGO, June 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include Walgreens (NYSE:WAG-Free Report), Express Scripts Holding Company (Nasdaq:ESRX-Free Report), Haemonetics Corporation (NYSE:HAE-Free Report), ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD-Free Report) and Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY-Free Report).
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Here are highlights from Friday's Analyst Blog:
Will Walgreens Miss 3Q Earnings?
Walgreens (NYSE:WAG-Free Report) is set to report third-quarter fiscal 2013 results before the opening bell on Tuesday, Jun 25. In the second quarter, this drug retail giant posted a 1.05% positive earnings surprise after two consecutive misses. Let's see how things are shaping up prior to the announcement.
Factors to Consider this Quarter
As reported earlier, Walgreens' total sales came in at $18.34 in the third quarter of fiscal 2013. Despite sales growth of 3.3% year over year, the quarterly sales trailed the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the fifth time in a row.
Nonetheless, the company witnessed higher comparable store sales and front-end comparable store sales. Additionally, comparable pharmacy sales improved in the third quarter.
As it crossed the halfway mark of fiscal 2013, things started looking up for Walgreens. Following the reconciliation withExpress Scripts Holding Company (Nasdaq:ESRX-Free Report), Walgreens is sanguine about increasing returns of customers. This is reflected in the higher number of prescriptions filled at the company's comparable stores in the third quarter.
Walgreens' timely progress to deliver first-year synergy targets following its Alliance Boots deal in encouraging. Notably, the company's third-quarter numbers will reflect whether its deal-making spree is paying off.
However, the generic wave in the pharmaceutical industry continues to hurt revenues. The company also faces tough industry conditions and competitive headwinds.
Earnings Whispers?
Our proven model does not conclusively show that Walgreens will likely beat earnings estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP (Read: Zacks Earnings ESP: A Better Method) as well as a Zacks Rank of #1, 2 or 3 for this to happen. This is not the case here as you will see below.
Zacks Earnings ESP: The Most Accurate Estimate stands at $0.90 while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is also at $0.90. This comes to a difference of 0.00%.
Zacks Rank #3 (Hold): Walgreens carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), which increases the predictive power of ESP. However, the Zacks Rank #3 when combined with a 0.00% ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.
Other Stocks to Consider
Here are some other companies you may want to consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of ingredients to post an earnings beat this quarter:
Haemonetics Corporation (NYSE:HAE-Free Report), Earnings ESP of +2.13% and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy)
ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD-Free Report), Earnings ESP of +4.84% and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold)
Label Updates for Lilly Drugs
Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY-Free Report) and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. recently announced that the labels for their diabetes drugs, Tradjenta (linagliptin) and Jentadueto (linagliptin plus metformin) will be updated in the US. Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim said that the label updates had been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The label updates will provide information needed to ensure the proper use of these medicines by physicians, pharmacists and patients.
Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim said that the Prescribing Information (PI) section of the labels for Tradjenta and Jentadueto will carry additional information regarding the risk of pancreatitis. The Important Limitations of Use sections within the Indications and Usage sections will be updated with the information that both drugs have not been studied in patients with a history of pancreatitis.
Moreover, this section will state that it is not known whether patients with a history of pancreatitis will be at a higher risk for the development of pancreatitis while using Tradjenta or Jentadueto.
Meanwhile, the Warnings and Precautions section will include information regarding post marketing reports of acute pancreatitis, including fatal pancreatitis, in patients taking linagliptin.
The Patient Counseling Information section will also include information about the potential risk and symptoms of pancreatitis. This section of the label carries instructions asking healthcare providers to inform their patients about the potential risks and benefits associated with the use of Tradjenta or Jentadueto.
Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim also said that they will inform physicians prescribing dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors and pharmacists about the label update.
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