News

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – March 7, 2024 – 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 Inc. (BRK.B), Linde plc LIN, Union Pacific Corp. UNP, Prologis, Inc. PLD and Exelon Corp. EXC.

Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:

Top Analyst Reports for Berkshire Hathaway, Linde and Union Pacific

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 Inc., Linde plc and Union Pacific Corp. These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.

Berkshire Hathaway’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Insurance - Property and Casualty industry over the past year (+26.4% vs. +23.7%). The company is one of the largest property and casualty insurance companies with numerous diverse business activities. A strong cash position supports earnings-accretive bolt-on buyouts and is indicative of its financial flexibility.

Continued insurance business growth fuels increase in float, drives earnings and generates maximum return on equity. The non-insurance businesses have also been doing well in the last few years. The addition of Pilot Travel Centers (PTC) has strengthened its energy business. A sturdy capital level provides further impetus.

However, exposure to catastrophic ("cat") losses induces earnings volatility and also affects the underwriting results. Huge capital expenditures remain a headwind. With the demise of Charles Munger, uncertainty looms over the company's performance.

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

Shares of Linde have outperformed the Zacks Chemical - Specialty industry over the past year (+30.5% vs. +23.6%). The company has an extensive range of industrial gas applications that is enhancing global productivity day by day. The company’s primary products in industrial gases include oxygen, which is used as life support in hospitals.

Linde has long-term contracts with on-site customers, backed by minimum purchase requirements, thereby securing stable cashflows. In the profitable industrial gas market, the merger of Praxair and Linde has created an efficient player with a considerable size advantage. However, increasing competition for new projects in emerging markets is concerning.

The company faces vulnerability due to economic growth slowdowns, potentially impacting industrial gas demand. Linde's history of consistently offering lower dividend yields compared with the composite stocks belonging to the sector has been a concern for income-oriented investors. As such, the stock warrants a cautious stance.

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

Union Pacific’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Transportation - Rail industry over the past year (+24.3% vs. +20.8%). The company’s efforts to reward its shareholders, even in the current uncertain scenario, are encouraging. In 2023, UNP bought back shares worth $700 million. The railroad operator paid dividends worth $3.2 billion in 2023.

Union Pacific's strong free cash flow generating ability supports its shareholder-friendly activities. On the flip side, a decline in volumes due to soft consumer markets and reduced fuel surcharge revenues is a concern.

Given the soft freight market scenario, the revenue weakness is likely to persist going forward as well. This will hurt overall volumes. Operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of revenues) deteriorated 220 basis points in 2023 from the 2022 reading, mainly due to revenue weakness. Capital expenditures are expected to be $3.4 billion in 2024.

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

Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Prologis, Inc. and Exelon Corp.

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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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