Weekly Performance Review Feb. 22nd – 26th, 2021

The major benchmarks pulled back sharply in response to a steep rise in longer-term Treasury interest rates.  The S&P 500 Index recorded its biggest weekly decline in a month, while the Nasdaq Composite index suffered its worst drop since October.  Consumer discretionary shares were particularly weak, dragged lower in part by a steep decline in automaker Tesla, while a drop in Apple shares weighed on the information technology sector.  Energy stocks outperformed as oil prices rose, and the rotation into cyclical shares continued as vaccine progress fueled optimism about the reopening of the global economy.  The shift led value stocks to handily outperform their growth counterparts, leaving them well ahead for the year-to-date period.  

This week the Dow lost 1%, the S&P 500 dropped 2% and the Nasdaq slipped nearly 4%.  The S&P 500 and the Dow are still holding onto February’s gains.  However, the Nasdaq Composite turned red for the month but is still positive for 2021.

2021 has been great here at WSWD.  Just last month, on the 28th we issued a trade alert for Darden Restaurants Inc., DRI stock is up 16% since the trade alert went out.  On the 26th of January we called a buy on Snapchat.  SNAP share price has climbed 23% since.  We featured Glu Mobile Inc. in our trade alert on February 3rd, since then the share price has rocketed 39%.  Congrats to our readers who have benefitted.  Continue reading to find out more about past WSWD trade alerts and to find out how our trades performed for the week.  

02-22-2021_TIPS ETF down 0.01%

Investors can at least minimize the effects of inflation using exchange-traded funds that incorporate an inflation-hedging via Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS).

An ETF to consider is the iShares TIPS Bond ETF (TIP).  The investment seeks to track the investment results of Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) Index (Series-L) which is composed of inflation-protected U.S. Treasury bonds.  The fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in the bonds.

02-23-2021_PHGE down 2.94%

BiomX Inc. (PHGE)  is a clinical-stage microbiome company using its novel BOLT phage therapy platform to develop customized phage therapies to treat chronic diseases ranging from IBC, colorectal cancer, Cystic Fibrosis and acne.  Currently there are 6 programs in the pipeline. 

While BiomX is in early stage, its phage therapy technology looks very promising and if proven out, BiomX could generate substantial upside for investors. 

02-24-2021_F up 0.26%

In October, Ford also unveiled its fourth-generation self-driving test vehicles based on the Ford Escape Hybrid crossover.  Ford is adding the new vehicles to its current AV test fleets operating in Austin, Texas; Detroit; Miami; Palo Alto, California; Pittsburgh; and Washington, D.C. Ford and partner Argo AI plan to launch a self-driving commercial business in 2022.  Per a report by Million Insights, the global autonomous vehicle market demand is projected to account for 4.2 million units by the end of 2030, witnessing a CAGR of more than 63%.

The consensus growth rate estimate for Ford year over year is 139%.  Moreover, of 12 analysts offering recommendations for the stock 5 rate the stock a Strong Buy.  There are also 5 Hold recommendations and 1 Sell recommendation for F stock.

---

---

02_24-2021_MSFT up 1.05%

Microsoft (MSFT) has taken the lead in its commitment towards carbon mitigation by becoming the first company among its peers to target “carbon negative” status by 2030.  It has created a $1 billion fund to reduce emissions and start clearing carbon.  This ambitious commitment is unprecedented and sets Microsoft apart from its entire sector.  Microsoft received the highest ESG rating of AAA from MSCI ESG Research in September 2019.

Of 34 analysts covering the stock, 31 rate the stock a Buy.  There are also 3 Hold ratings and no Sell ratings for MSFT stock.  With an average analyst price target of $282, MSFT seems like a good choice currently.  

02_24-2021_PLD down 3.96%

Prologis (PLD) is a logistics-focused REIT with multiple “first company to…” accomplishments in the ESG space.  Prologis is the first real estate company to issue green bonds. It is also the first real estate company to be awarded the WELL certification by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). Additionally, Prologis is the first logistics company to receive approved SBTs or “Science-Based Targets” necessary to meet the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement of 2015.  The company ranks highly on the Corporate Knights Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list and on the Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) 50 Best ESG Companies list.

Currently there are 14 Buy ratings for PLD stock.  There are also 3 Hold ratings and 1 Sell rating.  The average price target among the analysts covering PLD is $119.

02_24-2021_NEE up 0.18%

NextEra has now set an ambitious goal of reducing CO2 emissions, by 2025, by 67% from its 2005 base levels.  This goal effectively means that absolute CO2 emissions would go down by 40% even while NextEra’s energy production would double during that time.  To its credit, the company last year received a best-in-class preparedness assessment by S&P Global Ratings’ ESG Evaluation.  NextEra has, essentially, received the highest ranking given by S&P to a company within the utility sector.

Of 21 analyst recommendations, there are 13 Buy ratings, 8 Hold ratings and no Sell ratings for NEE stock.  NEE sports a 2% dividend yield and has an average price target of $89.  

---

---

02-25-2021_APPS up 5.18%

Digital Turbine, Inc. (APPS) has stayed under the radar for most investors. That hasn’t stopped the app discovery engine from producing epic gains, with the stock up more than 1,000% over the past year alone.  The analysts covering the stock think there’s plenty more to come for this small company with tons of growth potential.  

The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100%, according to Zacks Research.  Of 7 analysts offering recommendations for APPS stock 6 rate the stock a Buy.  There is one Hold rating and no Sell ratings for the stock.

02-26-2021_ATVI up 0.54%

Activision Blizzard (ATVI) share price dropped sharply after reaching a high of $104 earlier this month. Coincidently, the game producer held its annual BlizzCon event on Feb. 19-20 to discuss the latest developments with Blizzard titles.  Some investors anticipated hearing new updates at BlizzCon about the development of Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2, especially some kind of release timeline.  But no release dates were issued for these titles, which means these titles are coming in 2022 at the earliest, and perhaps not until 2023.  That’s something for patient ATVI investors to look forward to. 

---

---