Don't settle for ordinary quarterly reports.

Each week, I look at three companies that beat market expectations, since I believe that such outperformance is the biggest factor in a stock beating the market. Leaving Wall Street's pros with stunned expressions can be a good thing. It usually means that the companies have more in the tank than analysts figured. Capital appreciation typically follows.

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

We can start with Intuit (Nasdaq: INTU). The accounting software company reported a 13% increase in adjusted profitability, or $1.89 a share. Bean-counting analysts only targeted adjusted earnings of $1.82 a share.

Investors shouldn't use this robust report to project a souped-up annual total. This is a highly seasonal company. Just as tax-preparation giants H&R Block (NYSE: HRB) and Jackson Hewitt shine during this taxing quarter -- those two companies will report in the coming weeks -- Intuit rocks during the tax-filing season, thanks to its TurboTax software juggernaut.

China's SINA (Nasdaq: SINA) also clicked past the pros. The new media specialist's adjusted earnings soared 66% to $0.34 a share. Wall Street was banking on $0.27 a share on the tweaked bottom line. History is on SINA's side; the company has now landed ahead of Mr. Market in 14 of the past 15 quarters.

SINA's performance isn't an endorsement of all dot-com plays in China. NetEase.com (Nasdaq: NTES) missed the market's estimates, and Perfect World (Nasdaq: PWRD) cratered on a bleak outlook earlier in the week. 

Finally, Target (NYSE: TGT) proved that "cheap chic" has its place in a gradually recovering economy. The discounter's net income climbed 29% to $0.90 a share. Wall Street figured Target would only earn $0.87 a share during the post-holiday quarter.

It's important to keep watching the companies that surpass expectations. Over time, it will be a profitable 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 subscription.

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