Top Wall Street analysts say these stocks have the best growth prospects

CrowdStrike IPO at the Nasdaq exchange June 12, 2019.

Source: Nasdaq

While macro uncertainty continues to distract investors, it is prudent to focus on companies that are well-positioned to navigate challenges with their solid execution and deliver attractive growth over the long term by capitalizing on secular trends.

Here are five such stocks chosen by Wall Street’s top analysts, according to TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

Zscaler

First, we will look at cybersecurity solutions provider Zscaler (ZS). Earlier this month, the company reported its fiscal fourth-quarter results and outlook, which topped Wall Street’s expectations. That said, management cautioned that deals are taking longer to close due to a challenging macro backdrop.

Praising Zscaler’s performance, TD Cowen analyst Shaul Eyal said that the rising demand for the company’s Zero Trust solutions and disciplined spending drove the fourth-quarter outperformance.

The analyst noted that over the past seven quarters, Zscaler’s annual recurring revenue (ARR) has doubled to $2 billion from $1 billion. Other interesting points that the analyst focused on included the company’s large deals, a strong pipeline, and growing federal contracts. (Zscaler serves 12 of the 15 U.S. cabinet-level agencies.)

Further, the company continues to invest in AI and sees huge growth potential for its AI-powered features. It provides data protection capabilities to prevent the leakage of sensitive data through generative AI.

Overall, the analyst reiterated a buy rating on ZS stock with a price target of $195, saying, “Investments in AI, Cloud and go-to-market are set to accelerate growth.”

Eyal holds the 9th position among more than 8,500 analysts tracked on TipRanks. In all, 70% of his ratings have been profitable, with each generating an average return of 25.5%. (See Zscaler’s Financial Statements on TipRanks)

CrowdStrike Holdings

Another cybersecurity stock in this week’s list is CrowdStrike (CRWD), which recently reported upbeat fiscal second-quarter results and issued solid guidance.

In reaction to the impressive performance, Needham analyst Alex Henderson raised his price target for CRWD stock to $200 from $170 and reiterated a buy rating on the stock. The analyst noted that the company achieved strong growth in new products under its Identity, Cloud, and LogScale Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) offerings.

The analyst also highlighted management’s commentary about the company’s generative AI cybersecurity product called Charlotte AI, which they believe can immensely improve execution for customers by automating workflows. He added that the use of AI helped the company enhance its own adjusted operating margin, which increased by 472 basis points to 21.3% in the fiscal second quarter.

Henderson called CRWD one of his top recommendations in cybersecurity and said, “Crowd is taking market share with relatively stable pricing and strong new product uptake.”

The analyst also said that the company’s managed services, which are core to the Falcon Complete offering, are enjoying high demand and differentiate the platform from others like Microsoft (MSFT).

Henderson ranks 162nd among more than 8,500 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 58% of the time, with each rating delivering a return of 15.1%, on average. (See CrowdStrike’s Technical Analysis on TipRanks)

Chipotle Mexican Grill

Next up is Mexican fast food chain Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG). Baird analyst David Tarantino, who ranks 357 out of more than 8,500 analysts on TipRanks, said that CMG remains his top idea for investors with a 12-month horizon.

The analyst observed that the stock has pulled back since the mixed second-quarter results due to concerns about late Q2 2023 and early Q3 traffic, subdued Q3 restaurant margin outlook, and macro factors. Nevertheless, he feels that this pullback has created an attractive opportunity to buy CMG stock based on multiple positive catalysts that could emerge in the months ahead.

“Specifically, we expect signs of strong same-store traffic momentum and further pricing actions to lead to an upward bias to EPS estimates and support robust valuation metrics on CMG heading into year-end,” said Tarantino.

Additionally, he sees the possibility of CMG accelerating its unit growth to the high end of its target of 8% to 10% annually, supported by the hiring of additional construction managers this year. Tarantino estimates that a combination of about 10% unit growth and mid-single-digit comparable sales could drive low-to-mid teens revenue growth and more than 20% EPS increase, a profile which he believes deserves a premium valuation.

Tarantino reaffirmed a buy rating on CMG stock with a price target of $2,400. His ratings have been successful 62% of the time, with each rating delivering an average return of 10%. (See CMG Hedge Fund Trading Activity on TipRanks).

Lululemon

Athletic apparel retailer Lululemon (LULU) impressed investors with its fiscal second-quarter performance and improved outlook. The company experienced strong momentum in North America and a spike in its international business, mainly due to robust sales in China.

Commenting on the 61% growth in sales from Greater China, Guggenheim analyst Robert Drbul said that he continues to believe that China holds significant growth potential for Lululemon, as the company aims to quadruple international revenues by 2026. He also highlighted that Lulu intends to open a majority of its 35 new international stores, scheduled for this year, in China.

The analyst raised his Fiscal 2023 and 2024 earnings estimates and believes that demand for the company’s merchandise remains strong, as competitive pressures from upcoming athletic brands seem overestimated.

Drbul maintained a buy rating on LULU and a price target of $440, justifying that the company “stands to benefit from favorable secular tailwinds (health, wellness, casualization, and fitness, including at-home).”

Drbul ranks No. 958 out of more than 8,500 analysts tracked on TipRanks. Additionally, 57% of his ratings have been profitable with an average return of 5%. (See Lululemon Insider Trading Activity on TipRanks)

Acushnet Holdings

The last stock on this week’s list is Acushnet Holdings (GOLF), a manufacturer of golf products. Tigress Financial analyst Ivan Feinseth believes that the company is well-positioned to benefit from the ongoing growth in golf, driven by product launches and biannual new golf ball design introductions.

The analyst highlighted that GOLF’s strong brand name continues to be a growth catalyst, as its Titleist brand golf balls remain the preferred choice of PGA and LPGA Tour players. He also noted the strong growth in Titleist golf clubs, Titleist gear, and FootJoy golf wear segments, fueled by a wide range of innovative launches, including new TSR models that rapidly emerged as the most-played model on the PGA tour.

Feinseth increased his price target for GOLF to $68 from $62 and reiterated a buy rating, while emphasizing that the company is enhancing shareholder returns through ongoing dividend increases and share repurchases.

“GOLF’s incredible brand equity, driven by its best-in-class and industry-leading product lines, including FootJoy and Titleist, are major assets and the primary drivers of its premium market valuation,” said Feinseth.

Feinseth holds the 289th position among more than 8,500 analysts tracked on TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 58% of the time, with each rating delivering an average return of 10.9%. (See Acushnet Stock Chart on TipRanks)

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Top Wall Street analysts select these dividend stocks to enhance returns

Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., October 22, 2019.

Brendan McDermid

When markets get choppy, dividends offer investors’ portfolios some cushioning in the form of income.

Dividends provide a great opportunity to enhance investors’ total returns over a long-term horizon. Investors shouldn’t base their stock purchases on dividend yields alone, however: They ought to assess the strength of a company’s fundamentals and analyze the consistency of those payments first. Analysts have insight into those details.

To that effect, here are five attractive dividend stocks, according to Wall Street’s top experts on TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

Verizon Communications

Let us first look at telecommunication giant Verizon (VZ). The stock offers a dividend yield of 8%. Last week, the company declared a quarterly dividend of 66.50 cents per outstanding share, an increase of 1.25 cents from the previous quarter. This marked the 17th consecutive year the company’s board approved a quarterly dividend increase.

Recently, Citi analyst Michael Rollins upgraded Verizon and its rival AT&T (T) to buy from hold. The analyst increased his price target for Verizon stock by $1 to $40, while maintaining AT&T’s price target at $17.

Rollins noted that several headwinds like competition, industry structure, higher rates and concerns about lead-covered cables have affected investor sentiment on telecom companies. That said, he has a more constructive outlook for large cap telecom stocks.

“The wireless competitive environment is showing positive signs of stabilization that should help operating performance,” said Rollins, who ranks No. 298 out of more than 8,500 analysts on TipRanks.

The analyst contended that the recently announced price hikes by Verizon and AT&T indicate a stabilizing competitive backdrop for wireless. He further noted that customers continue to hold onto their phones for longer, which is reducing device upgrade costs and stabilizing churn.

Overall, the analyst sees the possibility of some of the ongoing market concerns fading over the next 12 months. Also, he expects the prospects for improved free cash flow to lower net debt leverage and support the dividend payments.

Rollins has a success rate of 65% and each of his ratings has returned 13.3%, on average. (See Verizon Hedge Fund Trading Activity on TipRanks)

Medtronic

Medical device company Medtronic (MDT) recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.69 per share for the second quarter of fiscal 2024, payable on Oct. 13. MDT has increased its annual dividend for 46 consecutive years and has a dividend yield of 3.5%.

Reacting to MDT’s upbeat fiscal first-quarter results and improved earnings outlook, Stifel analyst Rick Wise explained that continued recovery in elective procedure volumes, supply chain improvements and product launches helped drive revenue outperformance across multiple business units.

The analyst thinks that Medtronic’s guidance indicates that it is now well positioned to more consistently deliver better-than-expected growth and margins. He also expressed optimism about the company’s transformation initiatives under the leadership of CEO Geoff Martha.

“We view Medtronic as a core healthcare holding and total return vehicle in any market environment for investors looking for safety and stability,” said Wise, while raising his price target to $95 from $92 and reaffirming a buy rating.

Wise holds the 729th position among more than 8,500 analysts on TipRanks. Moreover, 58% of his ratings have been profitable, with each generating a return of 6.3%, on average. (See Medtronic Insider Trading Activity on TipRanks)

Drew Crum, is bullish on toymaker Hasbro (HAS). He increased the price target for Hasbro to $94 from $79 while maintaining a buy rating, and moved the stock to the Stifel Select List.

Crum acknowledged that HAS stock has been a relative laggard over the past several years due to many fundamental issues that resulted in unhappy investors.

Nevertheless, the analyst is optimistic about the stock and expects higher earnings power and cash flow generation, driven by multiple catalysts like portfolio adjustments, further cost discipline, greater focus on gaming and licensing, as well as a new senior leadership team.

Crum noted that Hasbro grew its dividend for 10 consecutive years (2010-2020) at a compound annual growth rate of over 13%, with the annual payout representing more than 50% of free cash flow, on average. However, any upward adjustments were limited following the Entertainment One acquisition, with only one increase during 2021 to 2023.

The analyst thinks that given the current dividend yield of around 4%, Hasbro’s board might be less inclined to approve an aggressive raise from here. That said, with expectations of higher cash flow generation, Crum said that “the company should have more flexibility around growing its dividend going forward.”

Crum ranks 322nd among more than 8,500 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 59% of the time, with each rating delivering an average return of 12.9%. (See Hasbro Stock Chart on TipRanks)

Dell Technologies

Next up is Dell (DELL), a maker of IT hardware and infrastructure technology, which rallied after its fiscal second-quarter results far exceeded Wall Street’s estimates. The company returned $525 million to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends in that quarter. DELL offers a dividend yield of 2.1%.

Evercore analyst Amit Daryanani maintained a buy rating following the results and raised his price target for DELL stock to $70 from $60. Daryanani ranks No. 249 among more than 8,500 analysts tracked by TipRanks.

The analyst highlighted that Dell delivered impressive upside to July quarter revenue and earnings per share (EPS), driven by broad-based strength across both infrastructure and client segments. Specifically, the notable upside in the infrastructure segment was fueled by GPU-enabled servers.

The analyst also noted that Dell generated $3.2 billion of free cash flow in the quarter and is currently running at over $8 billion free cash flow on a trailing twelve-month basis. This implies that the company has “plenty of dry powder” to significantly enhance its capital allocation program, he added.

“We think the catalysts at DELL are starting to add up in a notable manner ranging from – cap allocation update during their upcoming analyst day, AI centric revenue acceleration and potential S&P 500 inclusion,” said Daryanani.

In all, 60% of his ratings have been profitable, with each generating an average return of 11.5%. (See Dell’s Financial Statements on TipRanks)

Walmart

We finally come to big-box retailer Walmart (WMT), which is a dividend aristocrat. Earlier this year, the company raised its annual dividend for fiscal 2024 by about 2% to $2.28 per share. This marked the 50th consecutive year of dividend increases for the company. WMT’s dividend yield stands at 1.4%.

Following WMT’s upbeat fiscal second-quarter results and upgraded full-year outlook, Baird analyst Peter Benedict highlighted that traffic gains in stores and online channels reflect that consumers are choosing Walmart for a blend of value and convenience.

Benedict also noted that the company’s efforts to drive improved productivity and profitability are gaining traction.

The analyst reiterated a buy rating on WMT and raised the price target to $180 from $165, saying that the new price target “assumes ~23x FY25E EPS, slightly above the stock’s five-year average of ~22x given the company’s defensive sales mix, market share gains, and an improved long-term profit/ROI profile as alternative revenue streams scale.”

Benedict ranks 94th among more than 8,500 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 68% of the time, with each rating delivering an average return of 13.7%. (See Walmart’s Technical Analysis on TipRanks)

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