Wednesday's Hot Stocks to Watch: T, BA, and More

Earnings have been strong thus far in Q3, with some 20% of S&P 500 Index companies already reporting. Remaining reports will be important as a number of key industry players remain on tap to post results.

Today's hot stocks to watch include a telecom giant, two biotech firms, a pair of social media players, and more.

8 Hot Stocks to Watch Wednesday

stocks to watchHot Stocks to Watch No. 1: AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) reports Q3 results after the close. Expectations have the telecommunications giant posting EPS of $0.65, a penny shy of the $0.66 earned in the same quarter a year ago. Whisper numbers are for EPS of $0.66. Revenue is seen coming in at $33.26 billion, up from $32.16 billion year over year (YOY). Vying to attract consumers, AT&T announced Tuesday it will allow iPad customers to get double the data with AT&T Mobile Share. The stock, down 2.5% year to date, is a favorite among dividend investors for its hefty 5.37% yield.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 2: The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) will report Q3 numbers before the open. The aircraft manufacturer is expected to post EPS of $1.97, up from $1.78 YOY. Whisper numbers are much more bullish, with EPS of $2.20. Revenue is seen coming in at $23 billion. Despite a strong Q2, in which BA beat on EPS and revenue, investors sent shares lower, unhappy with the company's defense, space, and security segments (down 5%). Still, Boeing is among the best space stocks to buy now. The company is working with Elon Musk's SpaceX to develop low-cost, safe transportation for astronauts headed to and from the International Space Station by 2017. The result will be the first U.S. manned craft since NASA retired its shuttle fleet in 2011.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 3: Biogen Idec Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB) posts Q3 results before Wednesday's opening bell. Analysts are looking for EPS of $3.45, up substantially from $2.35 YOY. Whisper numbers are even healthier at EPS of $3.57. Revenue is seen rising 36% to nearly $2.5 billon. Likely to have driven the quarter are sales of Biogen's top-selling drug Tecfidera. Used to treat multiple sclerosis, Tecfidera is a $69 per pill treatment. It's expected to have generated revenue of $778 million in Q3, up 11% quarter over quarter. Biogen has beat earnings estimates in six out of the past eight quarters and has beaten analysts' sales estimates in seven of those quarters. Shares are up 14% year to date.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 4: Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) will report Q3 numbers before the open. Expectations are for the diverse healthcare giant to post EPS of $0.59, up from $0.55 in the same quarter a year ago. Whisper numbers are for EPS of $0.60. Revenue is expected to have risen 4.2% to $5.6 billion. Abbott beat earnings estimates in seven out of the past eight quarters, while missing sales estimates in six quarters. Shares are up 10% year to date.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 5: EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) reports Q3 results Wednesday morning. Analysts are looking for the cloud company to post EPS of $0.48, up from $0.40 in the same quarter a year ago. On investors' minds is what's next after talks of a possible merger with Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) have ended. Rumors of a merger had swirled for months, but came to an abrupt end last week. Had the deal gone through, it would have created one of the biggest technology vendors and potentially helped shore up the fortunes of two struggling companies. EMC shares are up 8% year to date, mostly on hopes of some kind of strategic deal or merger.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 6: Xerox Corp. (NYSE: XRX) releases Q3 results before the open. Expectations are for the business solution company to post EPS of $0.26 on revenue of $5.19 billon. Xerox beat EPS expectations in Q2 by a penny, while revenue of $5.30 billion came slightly below forecasts of $5.31 billion. Standpoint Research upgraded XRX last week to "Buy" from "Hold." Shares are up 7.23% year to date.

Hot Stocks to Watch No. 7: Yelp Inc. (NYSE: YELP) is expected to post EPS of $0.03 when the online local guide reports Q3 results after the close. Whisper numbers have YELP beating by a penny. Wunderlich Securities is upbeat heading into the release. "Yelp is executing at a high level and is one of the best positioned companies to take market share of local advertising spend and that should only expand as its partnership with YP's larger customer base and sales force materializes," the firm said. Wunderlich has a "Buy" rating and $105 price target on the stock. At $70.37, shares are up 2.12% year to date.

Hot Stocks to Watch No 8: Angie's List Inc. (Nasdaq: ANGI) is expected to report a Q3 loss of $0.05 per share when the reviewer of local professionals reports Wednesday morning. Wunderlich also weighed in on Angie's and said it expects the company's results to come in-line with estimates. "We believe the company has made positive changes to its business that have yet to translate into better financial results. Those improvements include lowering the paywall to expand the reach of the platform, opening its deals to nonmembers, and investing in a mobile, transaction-based service. We also expect sale productivity to improve given changes in the department and have continued to see large increases in the number of deals offered in the two markets we track. Rumors of the company getting acquired may have merit, even with the company moving ahead with its headquarters expansion plans." Wunderlich rates the stock "Buy" with a $13 price target. At $8.80, ANGI shares are down a punishing 42% year to date.

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