Strength Seen in Medical Properties (MPW): Can Its 11.3% Jump Turn into More Strength?

Medical Properties (MPW) shares ended the last trading session 11.3% higher at $5.13. The jump came on an impressive volume with a higher-than-average number of shares changing hands in the session. This compares to the stock's 11.1% gain over the past four weeks.

The increased investor optimism in the stock can be attributed to the favorable operating environment.

This health care real estate investment trust is expected to post quarterly funds from operations (FFO) of $0.16 per share in its upcoming report, which represents no change from the year-ago quarter. Revenues are expected to be $248.19 million, up 9.9% from the year-ago quarter.

FFO and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in FFO estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.

For Medical Properties, the consensus estimate for FFO per share for the quarter has been revised 3.7% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. And a positive trend in FFO estimate revision usually translates into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on MPW going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>

Medical Properties belongs to the Zacks REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry. Another stock from the same industry, Stag Industrial STAG, closed the last trading session 0.5% lower at $36.26. Over the past month, STAG has returned 4.7%.

For Stag, the consensus estimate for FFO per share for the upcoming report has remained unchanged over the past month at $0.62. This represents a change of +3.3% from what the company reported a year ago. Stag currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

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

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