MarketBeat: Week in Review 12-13 – 12/17

The Federal Reserve meeting was front and center this week. As expected, the Fed announced that it would continue its tapering process. However, it didn’t put a date on how soon a rate increase would follow the end of tapering. That’s one reason stocks are falling. Rising virus cases are also contributing to market uncertainty. Technology stocks are taking the brunt of the selloff for now. Next week will be a short trading week as the markets will be closed on Christmas Eve in observance of the Christmas holiday. However, you can still count on the MarketBeat team to provide insight into the stocks and stories that can help position your portfolio for the year ahead.

Articles by Sean Sechler                                                                                                                                                                

It’s been a rough stretch for tech stocks. However, Sean Sechler points out that it’s difficult to envision a time when tech stocks won’t belong in your portfolio. However, at times like this quality matters more than ever. With that in mind, Sechler provides investors with three quality tech stocks that offer strong growth prospects and rock-solid business models. Another strategy for investors looking to take risks out of their portfolio is to buy dependable Dow Jones stocks. These are often blue-chip companies that can be part of your portfolio’s core holdings because of their dependable returns. For more risk-tolerant investors, Sechler directed them to three stocks that will be added to the Nasdaq 100 index. These stocks can be intriguing buys because being added to an exchange generally leads to more analyst coverage, more liquidity, and greater institutional ownership.

Articles by Jea Yu                                                                     

Jea Yu was eyeing two stocks in the gaming industry that have two very different outlooks depending on how you look at China. In the case of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS), the stock is near Covid-19 lows as investors are fearing Chinese intervention as Las Vegas Sands has heavy exposure to the Macau gambling industry. Yu suggests that investors who believe the stock may be oversold on these fears should look for opportunistic pullbacks. On the other hand, MGM Resorts (NYSE:MGM) has the least exposure to the Macau gambling industry among the big three casino chains. And MGM managed to turn a profit in its most recent quarter. Investors who prefer this narrative should look for opportunistic pullbacks in MGM stock. Turning his attention to the retail sector, Yu was analyzing the recent sell-off in Nordstrom (NYSE:JWN). The opinion of analysts is that JWN stock is trading lower not because it missed on its earnings report, but because traders believe it will miss on its holiday season due to supply chain disruptions. This sets the bar low for the stock as investors look for stocks to sell at the end of the year.

Articles by Thomas Hughes

Thomas Hughes was analyzing two stocks that appear to be strong buys and one stock that may be one to avoid. On the bullish side, Hughes likes McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) and Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO). In terms of McDonald’s, it’s about the company’s size and fundamental strength. As Hughes writes, McDonald’s “doesn’t have the strongest growth outlook or even the highest expected price target but it does have what the others don’t and that is the support of the analyst.” Broadcom is a play on the expected strong demand in the chip sector and, as Hughes points out, the company just announced a $10 billion stock buyback program that is sure to send the stock higher in any event. Hughes expressed more caution regarding Federal Express (NYSE:FDX). The company was likely to report continued supply chain issues when it reports earnings. And that may weigh on the stock’s performance.

Articles by Sam Quirke

One positive consequence of the Federal Reserve’s announcement is that it removes a bit of the uncertainty that has been hovering over growth stocks. With that in mind, Sam Quirke gave our readers his picks for three stocks that look to benefit from the Fed’s announcement and look like solid buys heading into 2022. If investors are looking for recent winners that look like they have more room to run, investors should consider Ford (NYSE:F). At one time the stock appeared to be headed to penny stock territory. But with the company becoming a strong competitor in the electric vehicle (EV) sector, F stock appears likely to move much higher.

Articles by Chris Markoch

The emergence of the omicron variant is causing several employers to rethink return-to-work plans. However, the ongoing pandemic is only one reason for workers to stay at home. And Chris Markoch gave our readers three remote work stocks that are likely to see a revival as we head into 2022. Revisiting a topic that MarketBeat writers touched on a month ago, Markoch looked at Rivian (NASDAQ:RIVN) and Lucid Motors (NASDAQ:LCID) and offered an opinion on recent events and which may be the better buy. Markoch was also looking at BlackBerry (NYSE:BB) which is beginning to prove to investors that it can stand on its own as a cybersecurity company.

Articles by Kate Stalter

Kate Stalter was analyzing two of the hottest sectors in the economy: trucking and semiconductors. As Stalter writes the trucking industry is outperforming the broader market with many companies showing fundamental and technical strength. And although the global chip shortage appears to be easing slightly, demand for semiconductor chips is likely to remain strong through 2022 and Stalter gave our readers three semiconductor stocks to play this trend. Finally, Stalter was looking at two fiber-optic stocks that are trading at multi-year highs as network upgrades spur revenue growth.