Earnings are great. I mean, of course they are, but nothing beats earnings season. It won't kick up in earnest until later this month, but now is a good time to start looking for companies that top analyst projections. Blowing the market away often means that even the people paid to follow a company closely have underestimated how well things are going for it. Let's take a closer look at a few of the companies that humbled the prognosticators this past week.
We'll start with Constellation Brands
However, what intrigues me about this particular report is that if you look at the two previous quarters in fiscal 2006, analysts nailed Constellation's bottom-line production down to the penny. This fiscal third-quarter report is a refreshing break from tradition, with the company lapping targets, even if it's by just a pair of pennies per stub. It's only the second time over the past four fiscal years that Constellation has beaten its quarterly targets by that much or better. This makes the new quarter extremely critical in gauging whether Constellation is ready to break out as a perpetual market-thumper.
Monsanto
Walgreen
Walgreen may very well be the darling of the drugstore space. Yes, CVS
So keep watching the companies that lap expectations. Over time, it will be a rewarding experience for investors. That's the kind of surprise that market watchers relish in the Rule Breakers newsletter service. The strategy has paid off as the average Rule Breaker selection has trounced the S&P 500's market return. Want in? Check out a 30-day trial subscription.
Either way, come back next week to learn about more stocks that blew the market away.
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz is a fan of toppers. He does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this story. The Foo l has a disclosure policy. Rick is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.