However, gains on the production front might be able to mitigate some of the damage. During the second quarter, Whiting Petroleum’s average daily production of crude oil and natural gas jumped 55% from the year-ago quarter level to a record 170,245 barrels of oil equivalent. We expect the volume growth to continue in the to-be-reported quarter as well. Earnings Whispers Our proven model does not conclusively show that Whiting Petroleum will beat estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) to be able to beat consensus estimates. That is not the case here, as you will see below. Zacks ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is -8.33%. This is because the Most Accurate estimate stands at a loss of 26 cents, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged narrower, at a loss of 24 cents. Zacks Rank: Whiting Petroleum has a Zacks Rank #3. Though a Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of ESP, a negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult. We caution against Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Ranks #4 and 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions. Stocks to Consider While earnings beat looks uncertain for Whiting Petroleum, here are some companies you may want to consider on the basis of our model, which shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter: Exterran Partners LP EXLP has an Earnings ESP of +19.23% and a Zacks Rank #1. The company is expected to release earnings on Nov 3. Natural Gas Services Group Inc. NGS has an Earnings ESP of +21.05% and a Zacks Rank #1. The company is anticipated to release earnings on Nov 5. Swift Energy Co. SFY has an Earnings ESP of +11.11% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is likely to release earnings on Nov 5. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report WHITING PETROLM (WLL): Free Stock Analysis Report SWIFT ENERGY CO (SFY): Free Stock Analysis Report EXTERRAN PTNRS (EXLP): Free Stock Analysis Report NATURAL GAS SVC (NGS): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research
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