For Immediate Releases
Chicago, IL – December 11, 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 including Alphabet Inc. GOOGL, Oracle Corp. ORCL, Merck & Co., Inc. MRK, Canterbury Park Holding Corp. CPHC and CompX International Inc. CIX.
Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:
Top Analyst Reports for Alphabet, Oracle and Merck
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 Alphabet Inc., Oracle Corp. and Merck & Co., Inc., as well as two micro-cap stocks, Canterbury Park Holding Corp. and CompX International Inc. These research reports have been hand-picked from roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.
You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>
Alphabet shares have lagged the broader Tech sector this year (+25.3% vs. +33.1%) as well as the S&P 500 index (+25.3% vs. +28.2%), mostly reflecting regulatory uncertainty. The Zacks analyst believes that the company’s Google Cloud Platform products are benefiting from accelerated growth across AI infrastructure, its enterprise AI platform Vertex and generative AI (GenAI) solutions. Its dominant position in the search engine market is a strong growth driver. Major search updates and removal of bad ads to enhance the search results continue to boost traffic on Google’s search engine.
However, increasing litigation issues and expenses remain concerns. Rising cloud competition from Microsoft and Amazon is a concern.
(You can read the full research report on Alphabet here >>>)
Oracle shares have outperformed the Zacks Computer - Software industry over the past year (+65.4% vs. +23.4%). The Zacks analyst believes that solid adoption of strategic cloud applications, autonomous database offerings and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, along with recovery in cloud revenue growth, have been benefiting the company. The recent partnership with Amazon for Oracle Database@AWS and general availability of Oracle Database@Google bodes well.
Yet higher spending on product enhancements -- especially toward the cloud platform amid increasing competition in the cloud domain -- remain major causes of concern.
(You can read the full research report on Oracle here >>>)
Shares of Merck have underperformed the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry over the past year (-0.5% vs. +12.9%). Per the Zacks analyst, generic competition for several drugs, rising competitive pressure on diabetes franchise and declining Gardasil sales in China may pose challenges for the company. There are concerns about Merck’s ability to grow its non-oncology business ahead of Keytruda’s loss of exclusivity in 2028.
However, Keytruda, and new products have been driving Merck’s sales. Animal health and vaccine products are core growth drivers. Merck boasts a strong cancer pipeline, including Keytruda, which should drive long-term growth.
(You can read the full research report on Merck here >>>)
Canterbury Park’s shares have underperformed the Zacks Gaming industry over the last six months (-4.9% vs. +19.8%). The Zacks analyst believes that weak casino revenues and substantial losses from equity investments have ailed the company. Increased competition also remains a concern. Canterbury Park faces ongoing regulatory hurdles, particularly with the introduction of 500 on-track ADW historical horse racing terminals, which are currently subject to legal challenges and legislative scrutiny.
Yet, Canterbury Park's Canterbury Commons Development offers significant long-term revenue potential through diversified projects like an amphitheater, Winners Circle and residential units, driving growth beyond traditional gaming. Also, the company’s vision of a regional destination is progressing, with leasing success indicating solid demand.
(You can read the full research report on Canterbury Park here >>>)
CompX’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Office Supplies industry over the last six months (+31.8% vs. -11.1%). The Zacks analyst believes that a diversified customer base, strategic inventory management and growth in the company’s Security Products segment, which includes mechanical and electrical cabinet locks has been aiding the company.
Yet, the Marine Components segment has been declining in sales due to reduced towboat demand. Rising raw material costs and and exposure to macroeconomic conditions and competitive pressures in mature markets also pose risks.
(You can read the full research report on CompX here >>>)
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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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Canterbury Park Holding Corporation (CPHC): Free Stock Analysis Report
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