A 20-year investment research veteran and founder names 10 stocks he expects to outperform after earnings — and his 4 favorite sectors to invest in right now

• Sam Burns is the founder of Mill Street Research, an independent investment research firm.
• Burns identified 10 stocks that could beat and raise analyst expectations this quarter.
• And when analysts adjust future earnings estimates higher, share prices often move higher as well.

After a dismal 2022, Wall Street had low expectations heading into this year. Consensus was that first quarter earnings would suffer, with lowered earnings-per-share estimates still unreachable for companies struggling against inflation, higher interest rates, and low consumer confidence.

Instead, the S&P 500 rose on the back of better-than-expected earnings reports. Bank of America strategist Ohsung Kwon wrote in a recent client note that every sector except utilities beat consensus estimates for EPS in the first quarter, while all sectors beat sales expectations.