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Falling Earnings Estimates Signal Weakness Ahead for MidSouth Bancorp (MSL)

Zacks Equity Research
Updated

Similar to wise buying decisions, exiting certain underperformers at the right time helps maximize portfolio returns. Selling off losers can be difficult, but if both the share price and estimates are falling, it could be time to get rid of the security before more losses hit your portfolio.

One such stock that you may want to consider dropping is MidSouth Bancorp, Inc. MSL, which has witnessed a significant price decline in the past four weeks, and it has seen negative earnings estimate revisions for the current quarter and the current year. A Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) further confirms weakness in MSL.

A key reason for this move has been the negative trend in earnings estimate revisions. For the full year, we have seen one estimates moving down in the past 30 days, compared with no upward revisions. This trend has caused the consensus estimate to trend lower, going from 64 cents a share a month ago to its current level of three cents.

Also, for the current quarter, MidSouth Bancorp has seen one downward estimate revision versus no revisions in the opposite direction, dragging the consensus estimate down to a loss of 44 cents a share from 13 cents over the past 30 days.  

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The stock also has seen some pretty dismal trading lately, as the share price has dropped 14.1% in the past month.

MidSouth Bancorp Price and Consensus

MidSouth Bancorp Price and Consensus | MidSouth Bancorp Quote

So it may not be a good decision to keep this stock in your portfolio anymore, at least if you don’t have a long time horizon to wait.

If you are still interested in the Banks - Southeast industry, you may instead consider a better-ranked stock - BNC Bancorp (BNCN). The stock currently holds a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and may be a better selection at this time. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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