Beat the Market the Zacks Way: Liquidia, BILL, Colgate-Palmolive in Focus

2026.07.20 12:34 (GMT+0)

Beat the Market the Zacks Way: Liquidia, BILL, Colgate-Palmolive in Focus

Wall Street wrapped up last week on a weaker note, with all three major benchmark indexes finishing in negative territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite index declined by 0.67%, 0.77%, and 1.36%, respectively. Though the economy delivered a mix of encouraging inflation data and resilient consumer activity, fresh geopolitical tensions weighed on market sentiment.

June's Consumer Price Index unexpectedly fell 0.4%, the biggest monthly decline since 2020, pulling annual inflation down to 3.5%. Producer prices also eased, with the PPI slipping 0.3% in June, reflecting lower energy costs after oil prices briefly retreated. Retail sales rose 0.2%, while weekly jobless claims remained low at 208,000, showing the labor market is still holding up.

The week wasn't without challenges. Renewed conflict in the Middle East pushed WTI crude back to around $74 a barrel after it had traded near $67 just a week earlier, raising concerns that inflation could rebound. Manufacturing provided a bright spot, with the Philadelphia Fed index surging to 41.4, its strongest reading since late 2021. Meanwhile, investors turned cautious as rising Treasury yields and profit-taking in AI stocks pressured markets. Overall, the economy remained on a solid footing, but geopolitical risks reminded everyone that the road ahead could quickly become more volatile.

Regardless of market conditions, we, here at Zacks, provide investors with unbiased guidance on how to beat the market.

As usual, Zacks Research guided investors over the past three months with its time-tested methodologies. Given the prevailing market uncertainty, you may want to look at our feats to prepare better for your next action.

Here are some of our key achievements:

Liquidia Corporation and Integra LifeSciences Following Zacks Rank Upgrade

Shares of Liquidia Corporation LQDA have gained 50.5% (versus the S&P 500’s 0.5% increase) since it was upgraded to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) on May 12.

Another stock, Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation IART, which was upgraded to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) on May 6, has returned 45.6% (versus the S&P 500’s 2.7% increase) since then.

Zacks Rank, our short-term rating system, has earnings estimate revisions at its core. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

A portfolio of Zacks # 1 Rank stocks has outperformed the S&P 500 index by 5.7 percentage points this year. Through July 6this year, the Zacks # 1 Rank portfolio has returned +15.3%, which compares to +9.7% gain for the S&P 500 index and +12.6% gain for the equal-weight version of the index in the same time period.

Since its inception in 1988, this portfolio of Zacks # 1 Rank stocks has outperformed the market by 12.4 percentage points. The average annual return for this portfolio of Zacks # 1 Rank stocks since inception in 1988 was +23.9% through July 6, compared to +11.6% gain for the S&P 500 index and +11.4% gain for the equal-weight version of the index.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here >>>

Check Liquidia Corporation’s historical EPS and Sales here>>>

Check Integra LifeSciences’ historical EPS and Sales here>>>

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Zacks Recommendation Upgrades BILL Holdings and ASE Technology

Shares of BILL Holdings, Inc. BILL and ASE Technology ASX have advanced 20.6% (versus the S&P 500’s 1.3% increase) and 19% (versus the S&P 500’s 3.5% increase) since their Zacks Recommendation was upgraded to Outperform on May 7 and May 5, respectively.

While the Zacks Rank is our short-term rating system that is most effective over the one- to three-month holding horizon, the Zacks Recommendation aims to predict performance over the next 6 to 12 months. However, just like the Zacks Rank, the foundation for the Zacks Recommendation is trends in earnings estimate revisions.

The Zacks Recommendation classifies stocks into three groups — Outperform, Neutral and Underperform. While these recommendations are determined quantitatively, our analysts have the flexibility to override them for the 1100+ stocks they closely follow based on their better judgment of factors such as valuation, industry conditions and management effectiveness than the quantitative model.

Zacks Focus List Stocks Arcosa, Axon Shoot Up

Shares of ArcosaInc ACA, which belongs to the Zacks Focus List, have gained 26.7% over the past 12 weeks. The stock was added to the FocusList on January 6, 2020. Another Focus List holding, Axon Enterprise, Inc. AXON, which was added to the portfolio on June 3, 2020, has returned 26.4% over the past 12 weeks. The S&P 500 has advanced 4.9% over this period.

The 50-stock Focus List portfolio returned +13.12% in the first half of 2026 (through June 30, 2026) vs. +10.21% for the S&P 500 index and +12.14% for the equal-weight version of the index.

The portfolio returned +22.1% in 2025 vs. +17.9% for the S&P 500 index and +11.4% for the equal-weight version of the index.

The Zacks Focus List portfolio returned +18.41% in 2024 vs. +25.04% for the S&P 500 index and +13% for the equal-weight S&P 500 index. The portfolio had returned +29.54% in 2023 vs. +26.28% for the S&P 500 index and +13.61% for the equal-weight S&P 500 index. In 2022, the portfolio returned -15.2% vs. the S&P 500 index’s -17.96%.

Through June 30, 2026, the portfolio’s rolling returns on a one-year, three-year, five-year, ten-year, and since 2004 have been +26.93% (vs. +22.33% for the S&P 500 index), +22.23% (vs. +20.62%), +12.80% (vs. +13.41%), +16.65% (vs. +15.51%) and +12.48% vs. (+10.94%), respectively.

Unlock all of our powerful research, tools and analysis, including the Focus List, Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research Reports, Zacks Earnings ESP Filter, Premium Screener and more, as part of Zacks Premium. Gain full access now >>

Zacks ECAP Stocks Paychex and Hormel Foods Surge

Paychex, Inc. PAYX, a component of our Earnings Certain Admiral Portfolio (ECAP), has jumped 22.9% over the past 12 weeks. Hormel Foods Corporation HRL has followed Paychex with 19% returns.

The Zacks Earnings Certain Admiral Portfolio (ECAP), which consists of 30 concentrated, ultra-defensive, long-term Buy-and-Hold stocks, returned -7.14% in 2026 Q1 vs. -4.33% for the S&P 500 index.

The Zacks Earnings Certain Admiral Portfolio (ECAP), which consists of 30 concentrated, ultra-defensive, long-term Buy-and-Hold stocks, returned -9.4% in the first half of 2026 (through June 30) vs. +10.2% for the S&P 500 index.

For 2025, the portfolio returned -1.67% vs. +17.9% gain for the S&P 500 index. For the year 2024, the portfolio returned +16.26% vs. +24.89% for the S&P 500 index (SPY ETF). In 2023, the portfolio returned +12.17% vs. +26.28% for the S&P 500 index. The portfolio returned -4.7% in 2022 vs. the S&P 500 index’s -17.96%.

The ECAP and many other model portfolios are available as part of Zacks Advisor Tools, a cloud-based solution to access Zacks award-winning stock, mutual fund and ETF research. Click here to schedule a demo.

Zacks ECDP Stocks Colgate-Palmolive and Johnson & Johnson Outperform Peers

Colgate-Palmolive Company CL, which is part of our Earnings Certain Dividend Portfolio (ECDP), has returned 11.3% over the past 12 weeks. Another ECDP stock, Johnson & Johnson JNJ, has also climbed 9.7% over the same time frame. Of course, the inclination of investors toward quality dividend stocks to secure an income stream amid heightened market volatility contributed to this performance.

Check Colgate-Palmolive‘s dividend history here>>>

Check Johnson & Johnson's dividend history here>>>

With an extremely low beta and a history of minimum earnings variability over the last 20+ years, this 25-stock portfolio helps to significantly mitigate risk.

The Zacks Earnings Certain Dividend Portfolio (ECDP) returned -1.7% in the first half of 2026 (through June 30) vs. +10.2% for the S&P 500 index and +9.03% for the Dividend Aristocrats ETF (NOBL).

The portfolio returned -0.6% in 2025 vs. +6.8% gain for the Dividend Aristocrat ETF. For the full year 2024, the portfolio returned +6.95% vs. +24.89% for the S&P 500 index and +6.72% for NOBL. The portfolio returned -0.9% in 2023 vs. +26.28% for the S&P 500 index and +8.11% for NOBL. The portfolio returned -2.3% in 2022 vs. -17.96% for the S&P 500 index and -8.34% for NOBL.

Click here to access this portfolio on Zacks Advisor Tools.

Zacks Top 10 Stock Stride Delivers Solid Returns

Stride, Inc. LRN, from the Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2026, has jumped 35.2% since the list was released on January 5, 2026, compared with the S&P 500 index’s 8.8% increase during this period.

The Top 10 portfolio retuned +26.83% in the first half of 2026 (through June 30) vs. +9.97% for the S&P 500 index and +11.35% for the equal-weight version of the index.

The Top 10 portfolio returned +22.6% in 2025 vs. +17.9% for the S&P 500 index and +11.4% for the equal-weight version of the index.

The Top 10 portfolio returned +62.98% in 2024, vs. +25.04% for the S&P 500 index and +13% for the equal-weight version of the index. The portfolio had returned +25.15% in 2023 vs. +26.28% for the S&P 500 index.

Through the end of June 2026, the Top 10 portfolio has produced a cumulative return of +3,185.6% since 2012 vs. +629.1% for the S&P 500 index and +464.3% for the equal-weight version of the index. The portfolio has produced an average annual return of +26.9% in the period 2012 through June 30, 2026 vs. +13.5% for the S&P 500 index and +11.2% for the equal-weight version of the index.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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