Earnings Results Have These 5 Stocks Turning Heads Today

Despite crude futures dipping below $44 per barrel, all three indexes are in the green today, largely on the back of solid earnings reports. In this article we’ll take a closer look at the latest quarterly results from Boston Beer Co Inc (NYSE:SAM), South State Corporation (NASDAQ:SSB), Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK), Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT), and Watsco Inc (NYSE:WSO). We’ll also use SEC filings to determine how the smart money is positioned in each of the five equities.

Our backtests that covered the period between 1999 and 2012, showed that following the 15 most popular small-caps among hedge funds can help a retail investor beat the market by an average of 95 basis points per month (see the details here).

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Boston Beer Surges on Double Beat

Boston Beer Co Inc (NYSE:SAM) shares have rocketed upwards by almost 18% this afternoon after the company reported second quarter earnings of $2.06 per share on revenue of $244.8 million, beating the consensus estimates by $0.12 per share and $5.93 million. Revenue fell by 8.9% year-over-year, caused in part by a 4% decline in shipment volumes. Management sees full year EPS coming in at $6.40-to-$7.00, with the average analyst estimate of $6.70 per share being at the very mid-point of the company’s guidance. Ken Fisher‘s Fisher Asset Management owned 345,673 shares of Boston Beer Co Inc (NYSE:SAM) at the end of the second quarter.

South State Earnings Top Estimates, Shares Rise 5.4%

South State Corporation (NASDAQ:SSB) earned $1.18 per share on revenue of $113.52 million for the second quarter, beating earnings estimates by $0.07 per share but missing the top-line consensus mark by $2.28 million. Net loan growth during the second quarter was an annualized 16.5% while South State reported an efficiency ratio of 64.54%. Book value per common share was $45.64. As per our database of 766 active funds, 14 had a bullish position in South State Corporation (NASDAQ:SSB) at the end of the first quarter.

On the next page we examine why Stanley Black & Decker, Textron Inc, and Watsco Inc are in the spotlight today.

Stanley Black & Decker Delivers Solid Results

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK) shares are 4.8% in the green today after the company beat both the top and bottom-line estimates with its second quarter results. For the period, Stanley Black & Decker earned $1.84 per share on revenue of $2.93 billion, beating expectations of $1.72 in EPS on $2.91 billion in revenue. Due to strong demand and cost cutting/productivity initiatives, Stanley Black & Decker also raised its 2016 full year diluted EPS guidance to $6.30-to-$6.50 per share from the previous guidance range of $6.20-to-$6.40. In addition, the company announced that John F. Lundgren will retire as CEO at the end of July. Current COO James Loree will replace Mr. Lundgren as the head of the company. 27 funds in our system owned $788.74 million worth of Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK) shares on March 31, an increase from 22 funds with positions valued at $779.09 million on December 31.

Textron Outpaces Expectations

Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) reported second quarter EPS of $0.66 on revenue of $3.51 billion, beating the consensus analyst estimates by $0.02 per share and $150 million respectively. Sales rose by 8% year-over-year and the commercial aircraft manufacturer reiterated its adjusted 2016 EPS from continuing operations guidance of $2.60-to-$2.80. Despite the solid results, shares of the stock are down marginally today, as evidently the market was expecting something more. 30 funds that we track owned shares of Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) as of the end of March, down by two quarter-over-quarter.

Watsco Misses the Mark

After initially opening in the red, Watsco Inc (NYSE:WSO) shares have rallied into positive territory in afternoon trading despite the company reporting weaker than expected second quarter earnings. For the quarter, Watsco earned $1.82 per share on sales of $1.21 billion, missing the consensus marks by $0.22 per share and $80 million respectively. Although they were flat on a same-store basis, overall sales fell by 1% year-over-year, led by the HAVC equipment division, whose sales inched lower by 1%. One reason for the increase in Watsco’s stock price despite the soft earnings is that the company announced a 24% increase to its annual dividend payment, to $4.20 per share beginning October 2016. The number of funds in our system with long positions in Watsco Inc (NYSE:WSO) rose by two quarter-over-quarter to 21 as of the end of March.

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