The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Berkshire Hathaway, Home Depot, Mastercard, Intuit and Sony The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Berkshire Hathaway, Home Depot, Mastercard, Intuit and Sony

By Zacks Equity Research

This story originally appeared on Zacks

- Zacks

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 18, 2021 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), The Home Depot, Inc. HD, Mastercard Inc. MA, Intuit Inc. INTU, and Sony Group Corporation SONY.

Here are highlights from Wednesday's Analyst Blog:

Top Stock Reports for Berkshire Hathaway, Home Depot and Mastercard

The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Berkshire Hathaway, Home Depot, and Mastercard. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

You can see all of today's research reports here >>>

Shares of Berkshire Hathaway have outperformed the Zacks Insurance - Property and Casualty industry over the past year (+23.2% vs. +17.1%). The Zacks analyst believes that Berkshire's inorganic growth story remains impressive with strategic acquisitions.

A strong cash position supports earnings-accretive bolt-on buyouts, and indicates the company's financial flexibility. Continued insurance business growth fuels an increase in float, drives earnings and generates maximum return on equity.

However, exposure to catastrophe loss induces earnings volatility and also affects the property and casualty underwriting results of Berkshire. Huge capital expenditures remains a headwind for the company.

(You can read the full research report on Berkshire Hathaway here >>>)

Shares of Home Depot have gained +47.7% in the year to date period, against the Zacks Building Products - Retail industry's gain of +43.8%. The company boasts a robust surprise trend, with six straight quarters of earnings and sales beats reported as of Q3 2021. The Zacks analyst believes results have been boosted by continued demand for home-improvement projects, a robust housing market and ongoing investments.

The company is gaining from growth in Pro and DIY customer categories, as well as momentum in digital. However, the company reported soft gross margins in the fiscal third quarter, mainly driven by higher costs of goods sold arising from higher transportation costs. Supply chain headwinds also marred results to some extent.

(You can read the full research report on Home Depot here >>>)

Shares of Mastercard have gained +3.5% in the year-to-date period against the Zacks Financial Transaction Services industry's loss of -19.6%. Mastercard's third-quarter earnings beat estimates, driven by higher consumer spending. The company executed several acquisitions, which helped grow its addressable markets and drive new revenue streams. Deal wins, renewed agreements and an expanded service suite are expected to aid long-term growth.

The COVID crisis accelerated the use of electronic forms of payment, with much greater adoption of digital and contactless solutions. This provides an opportunity for the company's business to expedite its shift to the digital mode. It is well-poised to gain from its steady cash-generating abilities. Its strong capital position enables the company to pursue acquisitions and deploy capital. However, steep costs might stress margins. High rebates and incentives may weigh on revenues.

(You can read the full research report on Mastercard here >>>)

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Intuit, and Sony.

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.


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Mastercard Incorporated (MA): Free Stock Analysis Report

The Home Depot, Inc. (HD): Free Stock Analysis Report

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B): Free Stock Analysis Report

Intuit Inc. (INTU): Free Stock Analysis Report

Sony Corporation (SONY): Free Stock Analysis Report

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