In this article, we will look at the 10 Best Depressed Stocks To Buy Heading into 2025.
Will a Strong Earnings Season Help Overcome Election Volatility?
In one of our recent articles about 10 High Growth Non-Tech Stocks That Are Profitable in 2024, we talked about how the US market has continued to show resilience against economic and market challenges. We also covered the analysis of Anastasia Amoroso, iCapital chief investment strategist regarding the current market conditions. Here’s a short excerpt from the article:
“Anastasia Amoroso, the iCapital chief investment strategist, recently appeared on a CNBC interview to talk about the current market conditions.
She mentioned that investors had many reasons for caution to start October. Several outside moves had to be digested including yields spiking, the price of oil spiking, and some resurgence for the dollar. However, the market has been able to absorb all these moves quite impressively. She mentioned that the Fed is not likely going to cut rates by 50 basis points in the consecutive meetings and the markets have now repriced it to 25 basis points cut, which is now reflected in the yield prices.
Amoroso thinks that what could have been a bumpy start to the month has now paved the way for a soft landing momentum. While talking about how the rate cut is now a moving target for the Fed, she mentioned that it has always been known that the Fed reacts to data and it is not bad news that data is pointing towards an upside. Moreover, what’s more interesting is that not only is the Fed talking about the economy being on a strong footing but corporations including banks are calling it a soft landing, which is breathing new life into the market.”
As the market has entered the early stage of the earnings season, analysts are expecting earnings to help buffer the volatility that might come from the elections. Alan McKnight, Regions Wealth Management CIO, joined CNBC for an interview to talk about how the rate cut environment is reflected in the earnings. He thinks although it is very early to make any judgments regarding the earnings, however, as far as the recent data is concerned it is painting a positive image. He also mentioned that the good thing about the earnings so far is that overall management and CEO sentiment regarding their companies is positive and most are not expecting any weakness as we approach the end of the year.
While answering the question whether the current positivity is a trickle-down effect of the interest rate cut. McKnight thinks that the effect of the rate cut has not kicked in yet, what we are witnessing is a very strong consumer environment led by encouraging spending. The US consumer has been resilient and wants to spend, moreover, the rate-cut environment is enabling them to continue spending.
The earnings expectations have been lower moving in but they continue to rise as we reach the year’s end. McKnight thinks that this is going to be one of the key challenges for companies moving into 2025. Companies have been able to layer in some operating margin improvement, including sales growth. However, next year, they will have to sustain this growth, which is going to be difficult. Therefore, he sees growth coming down in 2025. He also pointed towards valuations becoming a problem if growth comes down, because the market is currently trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 22 to 23, and companies would have to at least maintain current-year earnings growth to be fairly valued.
The interest rates are coming down, which should technically bring down the cost base for the market. However, the cost base never comes down as quickly as the market would like, similar to inflation, that’s where companies would find it challenging to maintain high growth rates.
McKnight advised that investors should stay balanced while investing, he mentioned that investors shouldn’t be chasing high flyers or just the big names that have been working, instead have a broad portfolio based on quality. Moreover, while mentioning the sectors he likes, McKnight mentioned Utilities and Communication Services. He thinks that the current news regarding the expected growth in the power sector along with the discussion of nuclear power for data centers is going to shape utilities over the next 3 to 5 years.
With that, let’s take a look at the 10 best-depressed stocks to buy heading into 2025.
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Our Methodology
To curate the list of the 10 best-depressed stocks to buy heading into 2025, we used the Finviz stock screener and Yahoo Finance. We defined depressed stocks as those trading within 0% to 3% of their 52-week lows. Using the Finviz stock screener, we got an aggregated list of stocks that fit our criteria. Next, we ranked these stocks based on the analyst upside potential sourced from CNN. All indicators were recorded on October 17th, 2024.
Moreover, we have also mentioned the number of institutional investors holding each stock sourced from the Insider Monkey database. Please note that the list is ranked in ascending order based on the analyst upside potential.
Why do we care about what hedge funds do? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
10 Best Depressed Stocks To Buy Heading into 2025
10. NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV)
52 Week Range: $15.47 – $21.53
Current Share Price: $15.68
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 29
Analyst Upside Potential: 40.31%
NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) provides essential equipment and technology for the international oil and gas industry. It operates mainly in two segments namely, Energy Products and Services and Energy Equipment.
The Energy Products and Services segment specializes in providing tools necessary for drilling oil and gas, including drill bits, downhole tools, and drilling fluids. It also helps companies develop wells after they have been drilled and provides services to optimize their performance, ensuring that companies can work effectively during drilling and production operations.
Whereas, through its Energy Equipment segment NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) produces drilling rigs and related equipment that are used in both offshore and inland drilling.
The company reported its second quarter results on July 25th indicating a 6% year-over-year increase in its revenue. The revenue for the quarter amounted to $2.2 billion benefitting from a 6% growth in offshore sales, which overshadowed the 1% decline in North American sales. In a move to focus on its core business, management divested the Pole Products business, resulting in a net income of $226 million, or $0.57 per share for the company.
NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) benefits significantly from its offshore and international markets business. Offshore operations account for around 44% of the total revenue whereas international business contributes 62%. Moreover, it differentiates through its integration of emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence into its platform. The company has been utilizing AI in its KAIZEN app to help customers optimize drilling operations. This includes writing code for new software products that leverage AI capabilities.
Management has also started to apply AI to its operations across more than 50 manufacturing facilities to optimize capacity, improve machine utilization, and speed up production.
NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) is one of the best-depressed stocks to buy heading into 2025. It is currently trading close to its 52-week lows, however, analysts’ 12-month median price target is pointing towards a 40% upside from the current levels.
Ariel Appreciation Fund stated the following regarding NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Alternatively, drilling and production equipment provider, NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) weighed on returns over the period despite the company’s solid business fundamentals. NOV delivered a top- and bottom-line earnings beat, highlighted by rising demand in offshore and international markets, strong backlog order conversion, effective cost controls and robust free cash flow generation. Although a softening oil outlook in North America drove management to modestly lower full year guidance, the company continues to return capital to shareholders through a recent 50% dividend hike and $1 billion share repurchase authorization. As NOV right-sizes its onshore business and grows a more efficient offshore business, we believe the market will recognize the long-term value and re-rate the shares.”
9. Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA)
52 Week Range: $55.70 – $170.47
Current Share Price: $57.31
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 39
Analyst Upside Potential: 43.08%
Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) is a biotechnology company that focuses on developing new types of medicines using Messenger Ribonucleic Acid (mRNA). Messenger RNA (mRNA) is a molecule that carries genetic instructions from DNA to the cells, telling them how to make proteins. The company uses this technology to create vaccines and treatments for various diseases.
It specializes in developing vaccines for infectious diseases such as COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus. They are also working on developing cancer treatments and other rare autoimmune diseases.
Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) has been making significant advancements in its respiratory vaccine portfolio. The respiratory segment is designed to positively affect millions of lives each year, aligning with the company’s mission to make a meaningful impact on patient health. Its mRNA-1273 vaccine, known as Spikevax, remains crucial in combating COVID-19.
During the second quarter of fiscal 2024, the company launched its RSV vaccine, branded as mRESVIA, in the United States. Moreover, its mRNA-1010 has shown positive results in Phase III trials along with mRNA-1083, which also demonstrated promising results. It has achieved positive results for all five of its respiratory vaccines under development and plans on filing approval for 3 new products this year.
The revenue for the company was $241 million during the quarter, however, net income was a negative figure reporting a loss of $1.3 billion. Regardless of the loss Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) ended the quarter with $10.8 billion cash and investment position, and is focused on operational efficiency, having reduced operating expenses by over $600 million compared to the previous year. It is one of the best-depressed stocks to buy heading into 2025 as analysts’ median price target is pointing toward a 43% upside from the current level at a time when the stock is trading close to its 52-week low.
