B2Gold (BTG) appears an attractive pick given a noticeable improvement in the company's earnings outlook. The stock has been a strong performer lately, and the momentum might continue with analysts still raising their earnings estimates for the company.

The upward trend in estimate revisions for this gold, silver and copper miner reflects growing optimism of analysts on its earnings prospects, which should get reflected in its stock price. After all, empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements. Our stock rating tool -- the Zacks Rank -- is principally built on this insight.

The five-grade Zacks Rank system, which ranges from a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive externally-audited track record of outperformance, with Zacks #1 Ranked stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 2008.

For B2Gold, strong agreement among the covering analysts in revising earnings estimates upward has resulted in meaningful improvement in consensus estimates for the next quarter and full year.

The chart below shows the evolution of forward 12-month Zacks Consensus EPS estimate:

12 Month EPS

Current-Quarter Estimate Revisions

The company is expected to earn $0.09 per share for the current quarter, which represents a year-over-year change of +50%.

Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for B2Gold has increased 45.83% because one estimate has moved higher compared to no negative revisions.

Current-Year Estimate Revisions

The company is expected to earn $0.51 per share for the full year, which represents a change of +218.75% from the prior-year number.

There has been an encouraging trend in estimate revisions for the current year as well. Over the past month, four estimates have moved up for B2Gold versus no negative revisions. This has pushed the consensus estimate 12.67% higher.

Favorable Zacks Rank

The promising estimate revisions have helped B2Gold earn a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The Zacks Rank is a tried-and-tested rating tool that helps investors effectively harness the power of earnings estimate revisions and make the right investment decision. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Our research shows that stocks with Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and 2 (Buy) significantly outperform the S&P 500.

Bottom Line

While strong estimate revisions for B2Gold have attracted decent investments and pushed the stock 9.1% higher over the past four weeks, further upside may still be left in the stock. So, you may consider adding it to your portfolio right away.

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B2Gold Corp (BTG) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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

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