Quarterly financial reports play a vital role on Wall Street, as they help investors see how a company has performed and what might be coming down the road in the near-term. And out of all of the metrics and results to consider, earnings is one of the most important.

We know earnings results are vital, but how a company performs compared to bottom line expectations can be even more important when it comes to stock prices, especially in the near-term. This means that investors might want to take advantage of these earnings surprises.

2 Stocks to Add to Your Watchlist

The Zacks Earnings ESP, or Expected Surprise Prediction, aims to find earnings surprises by focusing on the most recent analyst revisions. The basic premise is that if an analyst reevaluates their earnings estimate ahead of an earnings release, it means they likely have new information that could possibly be more accurate. The core of the ESP model is comparing the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate, where the resulting percentage difference between the two equals the Expected Surprise Prediction.

Now that we understand what the ESP is and how beneficial it can be, let's dive into a stock that currently fits the bill. United Parcel Service (UPS) earns a Zacks Rank #3 right now and its Most Accurate Estimate sits at $2.53 a share, just one day from its upcoming earnings release on January 30, 2025.

UPS has an Earnings ESP figure of 0.62%, which, as explained above, is calculated by taking the percentage difference between the $2.53 Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.52.

UPS is one of just a large database of Transportation stocks with positive ESPs. Another solid-looking stock is Global Ship Lease (GSL).

Global Ship Lease is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock, and is getting ready to report earnings on March 3, 2025. GSL's Most Accurate Estimate sits at $2.34 a share 33 days from its next earnings release.

For Global Ship Lease, the percentage difference between its Most Accurate Estimate and its Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.30 is 1.96%.

UPS and GSL's positive ESP figures tell us that both stocks have a good chance at beating analyst expectations in their next earnings report.

Find Stocks to Buy or Sell Before They're Reported

Use the Zacks Earnings ESP Filter to turn up stocks with the highest probability of positively, or negatively, surprising to buy or sell before they're reported for profitable earnings season trading. Check it out here >>

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United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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