Companies that continually surpass expectations are a rare breed, but they can be found. More often than not, these companies are well managed with a strong brand and bright prospects, making them great long-term investments.
So, here are four companies that have a history of surpassing expectations.
World leader
ARM (LSE: ARM) just keeps surprising the City. Over the past year alone, analysts have raised their 2015 earnings forecasts for the company by around 10%, from 28p per share to just under 32p.
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This is not a one-off trend. The company has continually surpassed analysts’ expectations for the past five years as customers rush to get their hands on ARM’s stream of new chip designs.
That said, recently some concerns have emerged regarding ARM’s exposure to China’s slowing smartphone market. However, as of yet, ARM’s sales have not shown any sign of slowing down.
Further, ARM’s expansion into the Internet Of Things market, along with some select acquisitions have helped speed up growth.
City analysts expect ARM’s earnings per share to jump 75% this year and a further 20% during 2016. The company currently trades at a forward P/E of 36.1.
Challenger
OneSavings Bank (LSE: OSB) is one of the UK’s leading challenger banks, and the speed at which the bank is disrupting the market has caught many City analysts off guard.
During the past 12 months, analysts have hiked their forward earnings estimates for the bank by 30%. Moreover, there could be further earnings upgrades to come.
Indeed, when OneSavings reported its profit for the full-year to Dec 31 2014, the company’s net interest margin rose to 2.91%, beating expectations. Wider margins helped the company reported a better than expected level of profit. The bank could put in a similar performance this year. OneSavings currently trades at a forward P/E of 10.2 and supports a dividend yield of 2.5%.
Unloved spin-off
Indivior (LSE: INDV) was spun-off from consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser last year, and analysts immediately turned against the company.
Indivior has one key drug that generates the majority of its revenue. And sales of this drug are coming under pressure from generic competitors.
Still, analysts now believe that sales are declining at a slower rate than initially expected. Earnings per share were expected to decline by around 60% this year. Now, earnings per share are only expected to decline by 54%. That’s only a slight improvement, but it’s enough to impress the market.
Indivior currently trades at a forward P/E of 14.4 and will support a dividend yield of 2.8% this year.
Charging higher
JD Sports’s (LSE: JD) earnings have grown at a rate of around 10.3% per annum for the last six years, and the company isn’t planning to slow down any time soon.
JD Sports has released a stream of upbeat trading updates this year, sparking panic amongst analysts, who have rushed to revise their forward earnings guidance figures higher.
Earnings estimates have risen by nearly 15% over the past 12 months. JD Sports is now expected to earn 42p per share for 2015. That’s year-on-year growth of 8%.
JD Sports currently trades at a forward P/E of 14.4 and is set to offer a dividend yield of 1.2% this year.
