MarketBeat: Week in Review 3/15 – 3/19

The Fed has spoken and investors like what they heard. But the yield on the 10-year Treasury bond is going up and stocks don’t like that. Thus continues another week of the game of tug-of-war between euphoria and despair in the market. And don’t forget that March 19 was a triple witching event for investors to digest.

Looking ahead to next week, the stimulus rollout will continue. And many Americans have indicated they were going to be putting at least some of their stimulus checks into the market. Could this mean more meme stock mania? Actually you may want to look towards cryptocurrencies which are expected to be a recipient of investors’ capital. However, with March Madness upon us, savvy investors may want to take a look at sports betting stocks which have been waiting for this moment for a year.

Next week brings another round of earnings and the MarketBeat staff will be hard at work helping you identify and act on the trends that are moving the market. Here’s a sampling of what they saw this week.

Articles by Sean Sechler

An exciting, and potentially profitable, part of investing is finding attractive stocks that are off the radar of many investors. Sean Sechler gave our readers three compelling stocks that they may not be familiar with. These companies are making an impact in the world, and have a lot of upside, for now, because they’re not being heavily traded. Another group of stocks that looks to have some upside is the airline stocks. As the vaccine rollout continues airline traffic is recovering, and Sechler gave our readers three airline stocks that are beginning to take off. One group of stocks that investors are cooling on are those of special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs). When investing in a SPAC investors are betting on the management team finding an attractive company to take public. SPAC stocks remain highly speculative, but Sechler identified three SPAC stocks that look like they could be huge winners.

Articles by Jea Yu

Jea Yu was looking at two stocks that investors could consider buying on recent stock price weakness. The first of these was Li Auto (NASDAQ:LI). Like electric vehicle (EV) stocks in general, LI stock has had a rough go of it as air is coming out of the EV bubble. But with Li Auto delivering vehicles while many EV companies have products still in the concept stage, now is a good time to consider a position in the automaker. The second buy-on-the-dip candidate that Yu points to is Tupperware Brands (NYSE:TUP). Whereas Li Auto is a growth play, Tupperware is a value stock that Yu says is being sold off too much as investors shift away from pandemic winners. Turning his attention to a small-cap stock with loads of potential, Yu directed readers to Kopin (NASDAQ:KOPN). The augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) company looks like a strong buy as the market for enterprise wearables is gaining traction.

Articles by Thomas Hughes

One of the most investable trends of 2021 is renewable/green energy. Many investors are turning their attention away from an EV sector that is beginning to look a little crowded. However the alternative fuel market is a different avenue that may be more attractive at this moment. And Thomas Hughes gave readers two alt fuel stocks to capitalize on this trend. Hughes also was eyeing three penny stocks that combine a strong position in their respective industries with secular tailwinds and potentially can be attractive takeover targets for larger companies. Hughes was also eying the cannabis sector and specifically Hexo (NYSE:HEXO). This small Canadian grower has languished with a small fraction of sales. However, Hughes points out that the company is growing its revenue and new estimates suggest Hexo may be a top-three producer, and a profitable one at that.

Articles by Nick Vasco

Nick Vasco was looking at two stocks that are presenting investors with different questions in a post-pandemic world. In the case of Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA), the company reported softer guidance for 2021. As Vasco points out, this isn’t entirely unexpected news, but it does suggest that investors may want to wait for ULTA stock to come down a bit before entering, or adding to, a position. In the case of BJs Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ), the question is whether shares of BJ stock are ready to break out of the range they have been trading in. Vasco believes a move forward is likely, but investors need to watch the stock closely as management is expecting some softness in 2021. And Vasco was also helping investors understand how the crackdown on password sharing by Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) is already helping the stock take the next step forward.

Articles by Sam Quirke

Sam Quirke had his eyes on a trio of stocks that looked poised for a breakout. For investors who may have missed the boat on McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) pandemic rally, Quirke sees shares of the golden arches as having a well-entrenched level of support with a breakout likely to happen that will power the stock to new highs as investors shift to value stocks. Another pandemic winner with more room to grow is Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX). Every new high is an all-time high, and Quirke sees a bullish trend that will extend into the second quarter of 2021. And Quirke was also pointing investors in the direction of Skechers (NYSE:SKX). The iconic shoemaker took longer than some stocks to recapture its pre-pandemic level. But the company is getting a bullish outlook from analysts and looks to be ready to reward investors in 2021.

Articles by Chris Markoch

Cannabis stocks remain some of the more perplexing stocks in 2021 and Sundial Growers (NASDAQ:SNDL) has been one of the biggest movers. Sundial was caught up in the meme stock movement, but while prices are down sharply from their highs, Chris Markoch believes both bulls and bears may have a case. Markoch was also comparing Dollar General (NYSE:DG) and Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings (NASDAQ:OLLI). Both dollar store chains have seen their share price come down on expectations of slower growth in 2021. However with a continued focus on aggressive expansion, Markoch thinks DG stock still has some upside for investors.

Articles by Kate Stalter                     

Kate Stalter was educating investors about the recent cookie controversy that is threatening shares of The Trade Desk (NASDAQ:TTD). The decision by Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) to discontinue its practice of using cookies to track ads will be a headwind for TTD stock. But with the company already investing in other options, the drop in the stock should be short lived. Stalter was also looking at Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) a member of the Dow Transports Transportation Average that enjoyed a pandemic surge. The stock is getting downgraded by analysts but the LSTR stock chart indicates that traders may have more bullish sentiment. And while Avery Dennison (NYSE:AVY) may be seen as a boring office supply company, Stalter points out that the company is making a name for itself in the world of digital IDs. That is drawing the attention of institutional investors which could be a sign that AVY stock is headed for a breakout moment.