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 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 Google
It was the perfect setup. Wall Street had been talking down the company's prospects in recent months. The company had missed profit targets in two of the previous three quarters. Third-party research firms like ComScore
Well, Google showed 'em all. It also turned the tables on ComScore, which was one of the few tech stocks to fall on Friday. I guess the market is now questioning the quality of its research, though in ComScore's defense, the data was limited to domestic Google.com traffic.
Intuitive Surgical
Investors have gotten so used to Intuitive's winning streak that they actually sent the shares lower on the news, spoiled by the company's habit of trouncing expectations by wider margins in the past.
Finally, eBay
So keep watching the companies that lap expectations. Over time, it may 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.