3 Stocks That Blew the Market Away

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Every week, I take a look at a few companies that lapped their profit targets. Leaving Wall Street's pros with quizzical looks on their faces can be a good thing. It usually means that the companies have more in the tank than analysts had figured, and capital appreciation often follows.

Let's take a look at a few companies that humbled the prognosticators over the past few trading days.

We can start with The9 (Nasdaq: NCTY). The Chinese online gaming company that is best known for hooking China's diehard fantasy gamers on its licensed version of World of Warcraft earned $0.46 a share in its latest quarter, well ahead of the $0.32 a share that Mr. Market was expecting.

Rivals like Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA) and Perfect World (Nasdaq: PWRD) also came through with monster results. It's encouraging to see a market that's expanding so quickly; nearly every player is hitting it out.

Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) is another topper. The printing and computing company's second-quarter profit climbed 24% to $0.87 a share. Wall Street's guesstimates were just $0.85 a share, but what else is new? HP has topped analyst profit targets every single quarter since CEO Mark Hurd took over. Bumping up against desperate Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) and market-share-swallowing Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), HP continues to improve its margins in a tricky climate.

Finally, we have Target (NYSE: TGT) landing above its target. The discount department store chain's quarterly income dropped to $0.74 a share. Investors were braced for just $0.71 a share.

Target isn't perfect. Sales are down, but it's good to see the retailer produce back-to-back quarters of better-than-expected profitability.

So, keep watching the companies that lap expectations. Over time, it will become a rewarding experience for investors, as the market rewards the overachievers. That's the kind of surprise we look for in the Rule Breakers newsletter service. Want in? Check out a 30-day trial.

Either way, come back on Monday to learn about more stocks that blew the market away.

“Make Big Money With Options” Motley Fool CFO Ollen Douglass recently made over $100,000 buying options on 7 well known stocks. Now we’re committed to turning his small fortune into a massive one! And we want you to join us! Enter your email address to hear more:

Apple is a Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendation and Dell is an Inside Value pick. Try any of our Foolish newsletters today, free for 30 days.

Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz is a fan of toppers. He does not own shares in any of the companies in this story. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early. The Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Related Tickers

11/30/2009 4:01 PM
HPQ $49.06 Down -0.01 -0.02%
Hewlett-Packard Co… CAPS Rating: ***
TGT $46.56 Down -1.14 -2.39%
Target Corp CAPS Rating: ***
AAPL $199.91 Down -0.68 -0.34%
Apple, Inc. CAPS Rating: ***
DELL $14.12 Down -0.02 -0.14%
Dell, Inc. CAPS Rating: **
NCTY $7.55 Down +0.00 +0.00%
The9 Limited (ADR) CAPS Rating: ****

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