Finding the Best Top-Ranked Stocks to Buy Amid the Market Pullback

Wall Street has diverted into risk-off mode heading into Nvidia’s earnings release on Wednesday. Investors are dumping everything from Bitcoin to Constellation Energy and Tesla as they race to protect profits after the massive post-Trump election run.The rapid selloff is impacting the biggest momentum names and helping cool off an overheated market.See the Zacks Earnings Calendar to stay ahead of market-making news.Thankfully, plenty of stocks look ripe for the picking. Some strong stocks are still trading near their highs because they never got too far over their skis during the recent rally.With this in mind, let’s dig into how investors can use a Zacks screen to help find some of the best Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks to consider buying as we head into March.Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks outperform the market in good and bad times. However, there are over 200 stocks that earn a Zacks Rank #1 at any given time.Therefore, it’s helpful to understand how to apply filters to the Zacks Rank in order to narrow the list down to a more manageable and tradable set of stocks.ParametersClearly, there are only three items on this screen. But together, these three filters can result in some impressive returns.• Zacks Rank equal to 1Starting with a Zacks Rank #1 is often a strong jumping off point because it boasts an average annual return of roughly 24.4% per year since 1988.• % Change (Q1) Est. over 4 Weeks greater than 0Positive current quarter estimate revisions over the last four weeks.• % Broker Rating Change over 4 Week equal to Top # 5Top 5 stocks with the best average broker rating changes over the last four weeks.This strategy comes loaded with the Research Wizard and is called bt_sow_filtered zacks rank5. It can be found in the SoW (Screen of the Week) folder.Here is one of the five stocks that qualified for the Filtered Zacks Rank 5 strategy today…Why This Under-the-Radar Finance Stock is a Must-Buy Right Now1st Source (SRCE) is the largest locally controlled financial institutions headquartered in the northern Indiana-southwestern Michigan area. The company operates banking centers across its region. On top of that, the firm has 1st Source Bank Specialty Finance Group locations around the country, as well as several Wealth Advisory Services locations and 1st Source Insurance offices. In total, 1st Source offers a wide range of consumer and commercial banking services.Image Source: Zacks Investment Research1st Source topped our EPS estimates for six straight quarters, and its earnings outlook has skyrocketed over the last year. The Midwestern banking standout’s FY25 EPS estimate has jumped 8% in the last month alone, with its FY26 estimate 10% higher, landing SRCE its Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).The company is coming off its fourth year in a row of record net income and its 37th consecutive year of dividend expansion. 1st Source is projected to grow its EPS by 6% in 2025 and 3% in 2026 on the back of 7% and 3%, respective sales expansion.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchSRCE stock has climbed 130% in the past 10 years to outpace the Finance sector’s 85%. This run includes a 30% surge during the past 12 months to outperform its highly-ranked Banks – Midwest industry that lands in the top 6% of 250 Zacks industries. 1st Source jumped on Tuesday as it looks to return to its all-time highs.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchDespite its impressive run, 1st Source trades at a 43% discount to its highs and 35% below its sector at 11X forward 12-month earnings. On top of that, its 2.2% dividend yield provides investors solid income and is not too far below its industry’s 3% average.Get the rest of the stocks on this list and start looking for the newest companies that fit these criteria. It's easy to do. And it could help you find your next big winner. Start screening for these companies today with a free trial to the Research Wizard. You can do it.Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.Want more articles from this author? Scroll up to the top of this article and click the FOLLOW AUTHOR button to get an email each time a new article is published.Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: www.zacks.com/performance_disclosureZacks' Super ScreenIt's hard to believe, even for us at Zacks. But since 2000, while the market gained +7.7% per year, one of our top stock-picking screens averaged +56.7% per year.In fact, our Top 10 screens substantially outperformed the market with an average gain of +35.6%.Free – See the Stocks They're Turning Up for Today >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report 1st Source Corporation (SRCE): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks