Yahoo Finance The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Meta Platforms, Elevance Health, Canadian Natural Resources, The Coca-Cola and The Progressive
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – April 24, 2024 – 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: Meta Platforms, Inc. META, Elevance Health, Inc. ELV, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. CNQ, The Coca-Cola Co. KO and The Progressive Corp. PGR.
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
Top Research Reports for Meta Platforms, Elevance Health & Canadian Natural Resources
The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Meta Platforms, Inc., Elevance Health, Inc. and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.
You can see all of today's research reports here >>>
Meta Platforms shares have outperformed the Zacks Internet - Software industry over the year-to-date period (+36.2% vs. +11.6%). The company is benefiting from steady user growth across all regions, particularly Asia Pacific. Increased engagement for its offerings like Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Facebook has been a major growth driver.
Meta Platforms' is leveraging AI to recommend Reels content, which is driving traffic on Instagram and Facebook. Its innovative portfolio, which includes Threads, Reels, Llama 2, Ray-Ban Meta smart glass, and mixed reality device Quest 3 is likely to aid prospects. Reels continued to do very well across both Instagram and Facebook driven by growing adoption. People reshared Reels 3.5 billion times every day during the fourth-quarter.
However, challenging macroeconomic conditions remain a headwind for Meta's advertising revenues. Slow monetization of Reels, along with mounting operating losses at Reality Labs, are concerns.
(You can read the full research report on Meta Platforms here >>>)
Shares of Elevance Health have outperformed the Zacks Medical Services industry over the past year (+16.4% vs. +2.4%). The company's revenue growth, fueled by premium rate increases and rising memberships, contributes to its positive trajectory. Strategic acquisitions and partnerships have fortified its business portfolio.
Notably, a robust Medicare Advantage segment, combined with successful contract acquisitions, is poised to drive future memberships. It increased the 2024 earnings guidance to $37.20 per share, compared with previous year's $33.14 figure. The Carelon business is a key contributor to its success. It utilizes excess capital to boost shareholder value.
However, its rising expenses continue to put pressure on margins. Its high balance sheet debt is reducing financial flexibility. Also, its declining free cash flow is a concern. As such, the stock warrants a cautious stance.
(You can read the full research report on Elevance Health here >>>)
Shares of Canadian Natural Resources have outperformed the Zacks Oil and Gas - Exploration and Production - Canadian industry over the past year (+31.5% vs. +17.2%). The company's balanced and diverse production mix facilitates long-term value and reduces the risk profile. Canadian Natural's acquisition of Athabasca Oil Sands project in 2017 has added significant value to its asset base and buoyed the production prospects.
Notably, lower capital needs and improving operational efficiencies have enabled the company to generate significant free cash flow. What's more, the company remains committed to investor friendly moves by the way of dividend payout and stock buybacks.
However, Canadian Natural is set to face debt maturities each year out till 2027. Further, the C$3.25-billion term loan to fund the Devon Energy asset buy has worsened the company's debt-to-capital ratio and led to higher interest outgo. The interplay of these factors accounts for the cautious stance.
(You can read the full research report on Canadian Natura Resources here >>>)
Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include The Coca-Cola Co. and The Progressive Corp.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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CocaCola Company (The) (KO) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The Progressive Corporation (PGR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Elevance Health, Inc. (ELV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
