5 Stocks To Watch This Week: August 27, 2020

Swipe down to see our stocks to watch this week, or check out yesterday’s top-five biggest movers.

1. Stocks To Watch This Week: Abbott Laboratories (ABT) – $103.22

HEADLINE: On Wednesday Abbott Laboratories (ABT) revealed that the FDA had granted emergency use authorization for its 15-minute COVID-19 test.

• The reveal also highlighted that the test would be priced at $5 each.
• It would also be app-enabled, for test-tracking.
• Abbott Laboratories also announced on Wednesday that test production was being ramped up to 50-million units per month.

FLASHBACK: Their last quarterly report was above-the-estimate.

• Q4 revenue was reported at $27.2-million, $370-thousand above-the-estimate.
• Earnings per share was reported at $0.05 each, $0.01 above-the-estimate.

LATEST TRADING: During after-hours trading ABT increased by 11.9-percent, from $103.22 to $115.43.

TRENDS: ABT share price has remained fairly consistent over 52-weeks, except for the lockdown slump most shares suffered.

• September 1, 2019, ABT was valued at $86.04.
• As the COVID-19 dip began, ABT was $89.66. Falling to $68 at the peak of lockdown March 15.
• Since March ABT has constantly climbed. By April 12, ABT had surpassed previous values. Reaching $102.40 before this weeks positive surge.

This 15-minute COVID-19 test announcement has given ABT a surge and it’ll be interesting to see if the market supports or settles the value of the shares during trading. This question is why ABT tops our stocks to watch this week.

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2. NetApp, Inc. (NTAP) – $42.21

HEADLINE: NetApp, Inc. (NTAP) was number three on our top-five yesterday and today they climbed one-spot.

• On Wednesday, NetApp, Inc. reported second-quarter results.
• Q2 revenue was reported at $1.3-billion, $153-million above-the-estimate.
• Earnings per share reported at $0.73 each, $0.32 above-the-estimate.
• Revenue increased by 5.42-percent over the same period last year.
• Earnings per share increased by 12.31-percent over the same period last year.

LATEST TRADING: The main reason NetApp, Inc. climbed today is because during after-hours trading NTAP increased by 10.9-percent. From $42.21 to $46.80.

TRENDS: NTAP share value has remained fairly flat since the COVID-19 slump. And that makes yesterday’s results and after-hours surge intriguing.

• On September 1, 2019, NTAP was valued at $51.98.
• March 15, 2019, the peak of the COVID-19 slump, NTAP was $36.24.
• Since then NTAP has fluctuated between $42 and $48.

NEWS SENTIMENT: 70.39-percent positive, almost 10-percent off being bearish.

The combination of the above makes NetApp, Inc. one of our top five stocks to watch this week.

3. Box, Inc. (BOX) – $19.30

HEADLINE: Not only did Box, Inc. (BOX) deliver better-than-expected Q2 results on Wednesday, they delivered positive adjustments for Q3 and their 2021 financial year.

• Q2 revenue was reported at $192.29-million, $2.73-million above-the-estimate.
• Earnings per share were reported at $0.18 each, $0.06 above-the-estimate.
• Q3 adjustments improved revenue estimated from $192.79-million to $193-$195-million.
• Q3 adjustments improved earnings per share estimates from $0.12 each to $0.13-$0.15 each.
• Box, Inc. also upgraded its 2021 financial year estimates, from a revenue of $765.11-million to $767-$770-million.
• Earnings per share estimates for the company’s 2021 financial year was also improved, from $0.50 each to $0.56-$0.60.

LATEST TRADING: During after-hours trading BOX shares increased by 8.2-percent, from $19.30 to $20.87.

TRENDS: Up until August 24, 2020, BOX had remained fairly flat with the exception of the March COVID-19 dip.

• On September 1, 2019, BOX shares were valued at $17.55.
• February 23, 2020, before the COVID-19 slump, BOX shares were valued at $16.75.
• March 15, 2020, at the peak of the COVID-19 slump BOX shares were valued at $10.93.
• By May 17, 2020, BOX’s share value had surpassed the February 23 value ($19.09).
• Since May the value peaked at $21.48 in June and dipped to $17.18 in August.

NEWS SENTIMENT: 80.69-percent positive, making news sentiment towards Box, Inc. Bullish.

What the above shows is that BOX could be on the move, and possibly breaking out of its current trends. Making it definitely one of the top stocks to watch this week.

4. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSM) – $98.99

HEADLINE: The second company on this list that ranked in the top-five yesterday was Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSM). On Wednesday’s ranking they were #5 and today they climb one higher after a better-than-expected second-quarter report.

• Q2 revenue was reported at $1.49-billion, $31-million over-the-estimate.
• Earnings per share were reported at $1.80 each, $0.81 over-the-estimate.
• Revenue was reportedly down by 0.48-percent year over year.
• Earnings per share were also reportedly down by 31.82-percent year over year.
• The net profit margin was also down year over year by 32.31-percent.

LATEST TRADING: A report that beat-the-estimates didn’t stop WSM shares falling by 6-percent during after-hours trading Wednesday. From $98.99 to $93.01.

NEWS SENTIMENT: What’s even more surprising is that this after-hours decline comes while news sentiment towards Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is 85.32-percent positive. Making it firmly Bullish.

FLASHBACK: On August 21, research firm Gordon Haskett upgraded their position from underweight to buy, adding a target value of $110. Therefore it’ll be interesting to see where the market takes WSM by Friday’s closing bell.

5. Dollar General Corporation (DG) – $204.36

HEADLINE: The one and only company reporting today on this list is the Dollar General Corporation (DG). They are to report before the opening bell and have all the ingredients to make an intriguing watch.

• Estimates put second-quarter revenue at $8.35-billion
• Earnings per share for the second-quarter are expected to be $2.44 each.

FLASHBACK: For comparison, first-quarter results reported at:

• Q1 revenue was $8.45-billion, $1.05-billion above-the-estimate.
• Earnings per share were reported at $2.56 each, $0.86 above-the-estimate.
• Research firm Raymond James maintained their strong buy status on DG as of August 24 ($225).

LATEST TRADING: During after-hours trading DG shares increased by 1.6-percent. From $204.36 to $207.25.

NEWS SENTIMENT: Currently the Dollar General Corporation has a Bullish 84.45-percent positive news sentiment.

With the sentiment and flashback information DG could have easily been #1 on this stocks to watch this week top-five.

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Yesterday’s Biggest Movers

1. Garrett Motion, Inc. (GTX) said that it was “exploring alternatives for balance sheet restructuring” on Wednesday and the market reacted. Shares dropped 44.2-percent, from $6.88 to $3.84 by close.

2. BigCommerce Holdings, Inc. (BIGC) announced a partnership with Facebook and has made the biggest movers top-five two days in a row since. During Wednesday’s trading, BIGC climbed 33.5-percent, from $116.40 to $139.

3. CohBar, Inc. (CWBR) announced a public offering of common stocks and warrants Wednesday. Shares dropped 32.6-percent, from $1.44 to $0.97.

4. Fluent, Inc. (FLNT) was given a Buy rating by Canaccord Genuity on Wednesday, with a target of $5. Since then shares increased 31.9-percent, from $2.28 to $3.02.

5. Fluidigm Corporation (FLDM) received an emergency use authorization from the FDA on Tuesday for their COVID-19 test. Shares increased 30-percent, from $8.78 to $11.43 during trading.