The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Chevron, IBM, Medtronic, Lululemon And Carnival

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL –April 2, 2019 – 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: Chevron (NYSE:CVX) , IBM (NYSE:IBM) , Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) , lululemon (NASDAQ:LULU) and Carnival (NYSE:CCL) .

Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:

Top Analyst Reports for Chevron, IBM and Medtronic

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 Chevron, IBM and Medtronic. 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 >>>

Chevron’s shares have gained +9.7% in the past year, outperforming the Zacks Integrated Oil industry's +3.4% increase as its financial results have greatly improved over the period. In fact, Chevron's free cash flow and upstream production for 2018 hit a record.

The Zacks analyst thinks the company’s existing oil and gas development project pipeline is among the best in the industry, targeting a CAGR of 3-4% through 2023 thanks to the planned expansion in the Permian Basin. Moreover, growing free cash flow should enable Chevron to deliver stable and rising dividend in the foreseeable future.

However, there are worries of a drop in its downstream earnings that have been cutting into overall gains from rising E&P income. The massive capex might also play a spoilsport. Hence, investors are advised to wait for a better entry point before buying shares in Chevron.

(You can read the full research report on Chevron here >>>).

Shares of IBM have outperformed the broader market on a year-to-date basis, increasing +24.2% vs. the S&P 500’s +13.1% gain. IBM provides advanced information technology solutions, including computer systems, software, storage systems and microelectronics.

The Zacks analyst thinks IBM’s improving position in hosted cloud, security and analytics bodes well for investors. The RedHat acquisition, aimed at enhancing its hybrid cloud platform, is likely to pave the way for IBM's growth prospects. However, softness in Systems revenues and technology & cloud platforms remain a concern.

Stiff competition does not bode well for the Storage hardware segment. Strategic imperatives will take some more time to report meaningful growth and offset weakness in the traditional business. IBM’s ongoing heavily time-consuming business model transition to cloud is a headwind. Additionally, ballooning debt levels have been troubling IBM over time.

(You can read the full research report on IBM here >>>).

Medtronic’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Medical Products industry in the past year, gaining +17.5% vs. +15.5%. The Zacks analyst thinks Medtronic is successfully registering sustainable growth across major groups and regions, in addition to displaying successful achievement of synergy targets.

The company is focusing on geographical diversification of its businesses. This apart, the company has been seeing certain favorable developments in its Diabetes business. The updated 2019 guidance with raised EPS view increases investors’ confidence on the stock.

Meanwhile, the recently-closed acquisition of Mazor Robotics, which is expected to fortify Medtronic's position in spine surgery, is a major positive. Yet, the declining CRHF segment raises concerns. Escalating costs and expenses continue to weigh on Medtronic’s bottom line.

(You can read the full research report on Medtronic here >>>).

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include lululemon and Carnival.

Zacks' Top 10 Stocks for 2019

In addition to the stocks discussed above, wouldn't you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-holds for the year?

From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 – 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%.

This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs.

See Stocks Today >>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com

http://www.zacks.com

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 http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.