Square (SQ) closed at $104.30 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.46% move from the prior day. This change was narrower than the S&P 500’s 2.42% loss on the day. At the same time, the Dow lost 2.84%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 2.59%.
Prior to today’s trading, shares of the mobile payments services provider had gained 31.6% over the past month. This has outpaced the Computer and Technology sector’s gain of 7.27% and the S&P 500’s gain of 4.5% in that time.
SQ will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. The company is expected to report EPS of -$0.11, down 152.38% from the prior-year quarter. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $1.11 billion, down 5.39% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $0.14 per share and revenue of $5.11 billion. These totals would mark changes of -82.5% and +8.33%, respectively, from last year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for SQ should also be noted by investors. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company’s business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 18.36% lower within the past month. SQ currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, SQ is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 757.45. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 55.06, so we one might conclude that SQ is trading at a premium comparatively.
It is also worth noting that SQ currently has a PEG ratio of 50.03. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company’s expected earnings growth rate. Internet – Software stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 3.61 based on yesterday’s closing prices.
The Internet – Software industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 44, which puts it in the top 18% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
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