Buy, sell or hold: 5 top stocks you need to know
High inflation, rising cost of goods, talks of recession… while the overall picture of the global economy remains bleak the markets are rife with opportunities. Each day billions are being made in the financial markets. Whether it’s trading Forex, stocks, or commodities, traders and investors are profiting from volatility in the markets.
Today, we look at some of the world’s most popular stocks and find out from the experts whether you should buy, sell or hold. What’s more, we’ll show you how to tap into advanced trading insights on our platform later in this article.
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Tech stocks surge
Earlier in 2022, the FAANG stocks (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google), tanked the markets with a major sell-off. In August, however, tech stocks are making a comeback. Meta (Facebook) shares are up 12.1% so far this quarter, Apple 26.6% and Tesla has increased by 37.8%.
CMTrading Daily Market Review August 16, 2022
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Market wrap
US stocks closed higher on August 16, extending gains recorded in the past month.
The rise in mega-cap growth stocks boosted markets with shares of Tesla (TSLA) rising 3.1% and Apple (AAPL) gaining 0.6%.
The S&P 500 has recovered from its poor performance in recent months, lifted by the latest US inflation report.
Overall, the Nasdaq 100 gained 0.75% to close at 13,667.18, while the S&P 500 gained 0.40%. The Dow Jones rose 151 points to settle at 33,912.44.
- Apple
Analyst consensus: Buy
Market sentiment: Positive
Overall:
The forecast is based on 28 analysts offering 12-month price targets for APPLE in the last 3 months. The average price target is $180.82 with a high of $210.00 and a low of $136.00. The average price target represents a 4.50% increase from the last price of $173.03.
What you need to know
You don’t get to be the world’s most valuable company without having amazing growth. But is there more fuel left in Apple’s considerable tank? The company has delivered market-beating returns for years and is part of an exclusive group of trillion-dollar companies. Considering the great tech sell-off earlier in 2022, some investors are wondering if it’s time to cash in their shares.
Apple produced yet another stellar quarterly update in July 2022. Its latest iPhone is a best-seller, and its web services are paying off. The company is looking towards other areas of growth such as Apple TV and earlier this year scooped an Oscar.
Like the rest of the world, however, Apple is dealing with high inflation causing it to raise prices at the cost of sales. Supply issues in China are also hampering its sales.
Apple’s services business is positively impacting its margins and overall, the company is still a good long-term bet for traders and investors alike.
- Amazon
Analyst consensus: Buy
Market sentiment: Neutral
Overall:
The forecast is based on 40 analysts offering 12-month price targets for AMAZON in the last 3 months. The average price target is $176.04 with a high of $270.00 and a low of $118.00. The average price target represents a 23.00% increase from the last price of $143.12.
What you need to know
For years e-commerce giant Amazon seemed invincible. During the height of the Covid-19 era, Amazon became the default solution for global shipping and delivery. This helped Amazon stock soar into the four-digit territory.
In 2022, however the company proved vulnerable when it reported an unexpected first-quarter loss; Amazon stock dropped 14% in reaction, the company’s biggest share crash since July 2006. The company is retooling itself to thrive in a post-Covid environment.
Amazon stock, according to experts, is a buy and its latest earnings show a bullish pattern. The company, through acquisitions, is becoming a major player in the streaming service world and its online services are paying huge dividends.
- Tesla
Analyst consensus: Buy
Market sentiment: Positive
Overall:
Forecast based on 31 analysts offering 12-month price targets for TSLA in the last 3 months. The average price target is $876.24 with a high of $1,580.00 and a low of $73.00. The average price target represents a -5.53% decrease from the last price of $927.52
What you need to know
Tesla is a company at odds with its share price. Wall Street expects Tesla’s total revenue to increase 57.5% year on year to $84.8 billion. Yet despite healthy earnings, its stock is down 28.3% year to date. So, is it a Buy?
In August the company approved a stock split attracting many traders to the electric carmaker. Elon Musk’s company remains the king of the global Electric Vehicle (EV) market.
Tesla has delivered steadfast growth despite severe challenges stemming from production delays and inflation. It hasn’t delivered many short-term headwinds of late, but it remains a stock that traders should have in their portfolios.
- Meta
Analyst consensus: Buy
Market sentiment: Neutral
Overall:
The forecast is based on 35 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Meta in the last 3 months. The average price target is $227.03 with a high of $466.00 and a low of $140.00. The average price target represents a 25.62% increase from the last price of $180.73.
What you need to know:
Few companies exemplify the business term “too big to fail” like Meta. The company seems to be swimming against the tide delivering poor quarterly results throughout 2022. It’s a shocking fall from grace for the social media titan. Yet, many believe it will recover and hope to snap up Meta at its now considerably cheaper price.
In the past, Meta could rely on billions in online advertising, yet that revenue stream has all but dried up in a pandemic-fueled e-commerce boom. Meta is losing younger subscribers to TikTok and isn’t the social space it once was.
Meta management says the company is in transition as it copes with lower user growth and growing competition. Globally privacy changes have also undercut its dominance in the display-advertising sector. All this while Meta is pouring billions into its Metaverse – a project that might not come to fruition for years.
- Netflix
Analyst consensus: Hold
Market sentiment: Positive
Overall:
The forecast is based on 32 analysts offering 12-month price targets for NETFLIX in the last 3 months. The average price target is $229.30 with a high of $365.00 and a low of $157.00. The average price target represents a -7.78% decrease from the last price of $248.64.
What you need to know
Another company that cashed in during the pandemic era was Netflix. The video streaming giant saw a huge increase in subscribers as millions were confined to their homes from 2020 to late 2021. Unfortunately, times have changed for the company as it continues to lose subscribers to rivals and delivers poor quarterly reports.
Netflix came under fire in July when it announced it would show advertising on its platform. The announcement also coincided with a new cheaper subscription which could draw millions back to its platform.
An ad-supported platform could bring important revenue the company desperately needs as it takes on the likes of Amazon, Apple, Disney, and HBO.
Netflix’s user loss in Q2 was not as steep as expected. This could be a good sign for future user trends.
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