Buying a stock is easy, but buying the right stock without a time-tested strategy is incredibly hard.So what are the best stocks to buy now or put on a watchlist? General Electric ( GE ), SLB ( SLB ), Visa ( V ), Uber Technologies ( UBER ) and Marsh & McLennan ( MMC ) are prime candidates.
X Despite inflation worries and the Federal Reserve tightening rates aggressively, the market has confounded expectations for difficulties in 2023 and has turned in a strong performance so far in 2023.The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to cast a shadow over markets.
Best Stocks To Buy: The Crucial Ingredients Remember, there are thousands of stocks trading on the NYSE and Nasdaq.But you want to find the very best stocks right now to generate massive gains.
The CAN SLIM system offers clear guidelines on what you should be looking for.Invest in stocks with recent quarterly and annual earnings growth of at least 25%.Look for companies that have new, game-changing products and services.Also consider not-yet-profitable companies, often recent IPOs, that are generating tremendous revenue growth.
IBD’s CAN SLIM Investing System has a proven track record of significantly outperforming the S&P 500.Outdoing this industry benchmark is key to generating exceptional returns over the long term.
In addition, keep an eye on supply and demand for the stock itself, focus on leading stocks in top industry groups, and aim for stocks with strong institutional support.
Once you have found a stock that fits the criteria, it is then time to turn to stock charts to plot a good entry point .
You should wait for a stock to form a base , and then buy once it reaches a buy point , ideally in heavy volume.In many cases, a stock reaches a proper buy point when it breaks above the original high on the left side of the base.More information on what a base is, and how charts can be used to win big on the stock market, can be found here .
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x Thank You! You will now receive IBD Newsletters ALL DONE! Something Went Wrong! Please contact customer service CLOSE Don’t Forget The M When Buying Stocks A key part of the CAN SLIM formula is the M, which stands for market .Most stocks, even the very best, follow the market direction.Invest when the stock market is in a confirmed uptrend and move to cash when the stock market goes into a correction.
While a stock market rally that kicked off 2022 soon fell on its face, it has turned in stunning gains so far this year.
Indexes are currently at a potential turning point, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 trading just below the key 50-day moving average.
The stock market uptrend is under pressure.should stop buying stocks, aside from exceptional breakouts in exceptional stocks.Investors should be looking of exceptional stocks, such as those in the IBD 50 .The stocks below are near buy points and are possible candidates, at least for your watchlist.
It remains crucial to stay on top of sell signals .
Any stock that falls 7% or 8% from your purchase price should be jettisoned.Also beware of sharp breaks below the 50-day or 10-week moving averages .
Remember, there is still significant headline risk.Inflation remains a key issue while the Russia-Ukraine conflict is a wild card that has proved its ability to shake the market.
Things can quickly change when it comes to the stock market.Make sure you keep a close eye on the market trend page here .
Best Stocks To Buy Or Watch GE SLB Visa Uber Marsh & McLennan Now let’s look at GE stock, SLB stock, Visa stock, Uber stock and Marsh & McLennan stock in more detail.
An important consideration is that these stocks all boast impressive relative strength.
GE Stock GE stock is forming a flat base with an ideal buy point of 117.96, shows .This is the first base to emerge for the strong market performer since January.Investors could use 115.85 as an early entry.
Shares have edged below their 50-day moving average.
The latest pattern is a second-stage base.This counts as early stage, which means it is more likely to net big gains for investors.
General Electric stock is currently in the top 5% of stocks in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.
It has gained more than 68% in 2023, recently reaching a five-year-plus high in the process.In contrast, the S&P 500 is up just over 16%.
GE stock has been on a tear since breaking out from a cup-with-handle base in late January.
Analysts have called GE one of the better defensive moves for investors amid an uncertain macroeconomic environment.
Overall excellent performance is reflected in its IBD Composite Rating of 93 out of 99.At the moment earnings are the Achille’s heel, with its EPS Rating coming in at 76 out of 99.
Analysts forecast EPS growing 104% in Q3 to 55 cents per share.
Full year earnings are seen rising 20% in 2023 and 83% in 2024.
The aerospace segment — sometimes called GE’s “crown jewel” — makes jet engines and aviation systems for plane makers including Dow Jones giant Boeing ( BA ).GE Aerospace also runs a lucrative aftermarket business for engine repair and maintenance.
The stock has been soaring amid moves to narrow the focus of the sprawling conglomerate.
Earlier this year the firm spun off, GE HealthCare Technologies ( GEHC ).It is part of a three-way breakup for General Electric.
It is splitting into independent energy, health care and aviation companies, aiming to be a pure-play aerospace company in early 2024.Prior to that, it shed a series of assets, from lighting to locomotives.
SLB Stock SLB, formerly Schlumberger, is trading just above a cup-with-handle base buy point of 58.70.
Investors could also choose to use 60.12 as a new handle.The benefit here is it would offer a higher buy zone.
The stock rebounded recently from the 21-day exponential moving average .
Overall performance is top notch, netting it a perfect IBD Composite Rating of 99.Earnings performance is particularly impressive, with EPS growing an average 68% over the past three quarters.
The stock is also in the top 6% of issues in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.
SLB is one of the world’s largest providers of on- and offshore drilling services.It also provides technology for well drilling, production, and oil and gas processing.
Energy has been rallying of late, which has fueled upward momentum for oil stocks.Oil field services giant SLB is actionable after spiking, as U.S.oil prices hit fresh heights for 2023.
On July 21, SLB narrowly topped Q2 profit expectations but missed on revenue.
Despite this SLB Chief Executive Officer Olivier Le Peuch told analysts he remains optimistic about the long-term outlook.
“We continue to see positive upstream investment momentum in the international and offshore markets,” he said.”These markets are being driven by resilient long-cycle offshore developments, production capacity expansions, the return of global exploration and appraisal, and the recognition of gas as a critical fuel source for energy security and the energy transition.”
Analysts see third-quarter earnings growing 22% to 77 cents per share with sales increasing 12% to $8.34 billion.
In addition, Wall Street is expecting SLB profit to grow 37% to $2.98 per share in 2023 while it is seen jumping a further 23% in 2024.
Looking For The Next Big Stock Market Winners? Start With These 3 Steps
Visa Stock The payment processor stock is actionable after clearing a flat base official buy point of 245.37.This is part of a bullish base-on-base formation.
has been moving higher since late July but has work to do to reclaim recent highs.
All-around performance here is strong, with its IBD Composite Rating coming in at 94 out of 99.
Earnings growth is sturdy, if not ideal, with EPS rising by an average of 15.4% over the past three quarters.
Gains are seen trending steadily higher.EPS is expected to climb 16% in 2023 before rising an additional 14% in 2024
Institutional investors have been net buyers of the stock of late, with its Accumulation/Distribution Rating coming in at B-.In total, 51% of its stock is currently held by funds with a further 2% being held by banks.
In the most recent quarter Visa earnings rose 9% to $2.16 per share on 12% revenue growth to $8.1 billion, topping analyst views.A resilient U.S.
consumer and strong travel trends worldwide are fueling transaction growth.
Payments volume increased 9% for the quarter while cross-border volume vaulted 17%.
Service fee revenues rose 15% to $3.66 billion, topping expectations of $3.63 billion.
Data processing fees also rose 15% to $4.1 billion, beating FactSet estimates of a 10.8% gain.
International transaction revenue swung 14% higher to $2.92 billion, but fell short of forecasts of $3.01 billion.
The credit card giant looks to have emerged unscathed from the recent banking crisis sparked by the failure of Silicon Valley Bank.The event sent shock waves through financial markets, with midsize banks bearing the brunt of losses during the March mayhem.
The key point here for investors is that payment processors Visa and Mastercard do not carry card balances on their books.This is in contrast to American Express and Discover Financial ( DFS ).
Instead it is the issuing banks such as JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) and Wells Fargo ( WFC ) that carry the upside and downside on the provision of credit.Visa and Mastercard make money on credit and debit card transaction fees.
For now, at least, the U.S.economy continues to defy gloomy expectations.The Consumer Confidence Index is at its highest level since July 2021.
In a May 31 appearance at a Bernstein investor conference, outgoing Visa CFO Vasant Prabhu highlighted big opportunities ahead, thanks to three growth engines.
While traditional consumer payments continue to see solid growth, “new flows and value-added services can grow faster” than payments for a long time to come.
The new flows comprise new-use cases for Visa’s network, including peer-to-peer payments, payroll and cross-border remittances.
Uber Stock Uber has formed a new flat base with an ideal buy point of 49.49 and a 47.70 early entry.You could also view the pattern as a shallow cup-with-handle, with a 47.70 official buy point.
The stock is rebounding nicely after a pullback to the 50-day line while the relative strength line is also bending higher.
Overall performance is strong, with its IBD Composite Rating coming in at 87 out of 99.It is in the top 4% of stocks in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.
Big Money have been net buyers of the stock of late, with its Accumulation/Distribution Rating coming in at a strong B+
The company benefited during the pandemic from the firm’s range of transportation and delivery services.This helped offset a sharp decline in the ride-sharing business during this period.
Now the ride-sharing business is back in the driver’s seat.
Sales soared 38% for the division during the quarter to $4.89 billion.Delivery revenue jumped 14% year over year to $3.05 billion.
In 2021, the company launched Uber One, a membership program that offers discounts on food delivery.There also are perks for use of its ride-sharing business.
Uber has been lowering spending this year with measures such as layoffs in its recruiting and freight divisions.
Uber recently reached a milestone by turning in its first profitable quarter.
Uber’s gross bookings grew 16% to $33.6 billion, ahead of analyst views for $33.49 billion.
Analysts expect the firm to post a profit of $1.02 per share in 2023 before surging 59% to $1.62 in 2024.
Evercore ISI analyst Mark Mahaney recently named Uber its top internet large-cap pick.He has a price target of 75 on the stock.
“UBER was forced very early on in the Covid crisis to take drastic cost actions — actions which helped it attain the FCF (free cash flow) inflection it reached in Q2:22 and the record FCF results of the last four quarters,” he said in a note to clients.
He also believes the company’s Mobility segment is likely to be “relatively recession-resistant from a demand perspective.”.
