3 Stocks That Blew the Market Away

I believe that the biggest factor in a stock's ability to beat the market is its ability to beat the market's expectations. That's why I look every week at three companies that have humbled Wall Street's pros over the past few trading days. If a company has more in the tank than the analysts figured, capital appreciation often follows.

We can start with Deere (NYSE: DE). The maker of heavy agricultural and construction machinery posted a quarterly profit of $0.23 a share after backing out a bunch of one-time charges. That's a far cry from the $0.81 a share it generated a year ago, but analysts were braced for a mere $0.03 showing this time around.

Breakfast at Tiffany (NYSE: TIF) was tasty on Wednesday, when the jewelry retailer delivered net income of $0.34 a share from continuing operations, blowing past Mr. Market's target of $0.24 a share. This showing bodes well for high-end jewelry rivals Signet (NYSE: SIG) and Blue Nile (Nasdaq: NILE).

Finally, we have China Finance Online (Nasdaq: JRJC) with a relative victory in China. It shed only $0.05 a share in its latest quarter, and on a non-GAAP basis, the company posted a profit of $0.03 a share. That's less than what the online-investment-research specialist posted a year ago, but analysts were braced for a slightly wider deficit. Wireless and ad-supported content haven't been enough to offset declining subscription revenue.

Growth investors may prefer sexier dot-com plays in China, including Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) in paid search and Changyou.com (Nasdaq: CYOU) in fantasy games, but value investors may be drawn to China Finance Online's cash position, which makes up more than half of its market cap at the moment.

© 2009 UCLICK L.L.C.