In this piece, we will take a look at ten oversold global stocks to buy now.
‘There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen” is apt when starting a piece about global stocks. The four weeks of November and the first two weeks of December have brought seismic shifts that have reworked the way investors expect the world to function for the next couple of years.
Brushing geopolitics aside, for Wall Street, the biggest event over this period was the 2024 US Presidential Election. A hotly contested battle, it saw President-elect Donald Trump emerge victorious. Trump’s effects on the markets were immediate as investors rushed to pile into sectors that they believed would benefit from the incoming administration’s focus on fewer regulations. Across the globe, the Chinese government also wondered about the impacts of the President-elect’s promised tariffs, while closer to home, governments in Europe wondered if they would have to fend off a glut of Chinese goods that might head their way if America constrained China’s ability to export it with cheap products.
Starting from the stock market, two sectors were notable for their performance once the election’s outcome was certain. These two sectors are the banking sector and energy. The S&P’s bank stock index surged by a whopping 13.8% after the election while energy stocks added 4%. In contrast, the benchmark index jumped by 3.8% to confirm that investors were bullish about certain sectors of the economy.
Since this is a piece about oversold global stocks, it’s important to discuss in detail how the world has responded to Trump’s win instead of analyzing its effects on domestic US stock markets. One of the President-elect’s biggest campaign promises is to enact tariffs against China. In a statement made on his social media platform after he won the election, Trump linked the Chinese tariffs with the deadly drug fentanyl making its way to America’s streets. He outlined that “On January 20th, as one of my many first Executive Orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% Tariff on ALL products coming into the United States.” Trump added that the tariff would remain in place until “Drugs, in particular Fentanyl” stopped entering the US.
In response, Chinese leaders, who are already struggling with a weak economy are considering whether to increase economic stimulus to battle potential American tariffs. In a meeting top Communist Party officials indicated that they would undertake China’s first monetary policy loosening in 14 years, as they shared that a “more proactive fiscal policy and an appropriately loose monetary policy should be implemented, enhancing and refining the policy toolkit, strengthening extraordinary counter-cyclical adjustments.” The key concern for policymakers in China surrounds their aim of growing the Chinese economy by 5% in 2025. Should President-elect Trump’s tariffs materialize, then America’s imports from China will fall and lead to either lower Chinese economic output or a diversion of its exports to alternate countries. The latter option will be tricky due to the US’ status as the world’s largest economy.
While Trump’s victory was a boon for US stocks, European stocks displayed mixed performance. Tariffs also drove investor sentiment for European equities, whether they were from the EU or from the UK. The Euro 600 stock index added as much as 1.2% after Trump’s victory was announced, but ended up being down 1.26% by the end of the week following the election. European investors were jittery about the President-elect’s promise of 10% tariffs for all imports.
The British FTSE 100 also gained 1% after Trump’s victory but ended up losing momentum and ended in the red soon afterward. Economists believe that as the tariffs could potentially increase US prices, the Federal Reserve can keep rates higher and lead to global currencies falling. Since the election, the Euro and the Pound have lost 3.96% and 2.3% to the US dollar on the back of investor expectations of a stronger dollar in the near-term future.
Before we get to our list of the best oversold global stocks to buy, a brief look at some global stocks that surged following Trump’s win is also important. One stock that surged by 27% is a Swiss mining company with a significant presence in Ukraine. Investors bet on the shares with the hope that a Trump victory would end the conflict in Ukraine. Britain’s largest defense contractor, BAE, surged by 8% as investors tried to get an upper hand on potentially larger defense orders for the firm if the US cuts down NATO funding and asks Europe to contribute more.
An aerial view of an oil rig in the Texas Gulf Coast with people working on it, emphasizing the company’s oil & gas production interests.
Our Methodology
To make our list of the most oversold global stocks to buy, we ranked the 40 most valuable ex-US stocks with a 14-day RSI reading of 30 or lower by the number of hedge funds that had bought the shares during Q3 2024. Out of these, we picked the stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? 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. Teekay Tankers Ltd. (NYSE:TNK)
14-day RSI Score: 27.29
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 18
Teekay Tankers Ltd. (NYSE:TNK) is a Bermuda-based oil shipping company. Given the turmoil in the Middle East and the attacks faced by tankers during transit, the fact that the firm’s shares are down by 23.6% year-to-date is unsurprising. Oil tanker rates have fallen for the past couple of months due to lower demand from countries such as China and production cuts in the Middle East to support oil prices. For firms like Teekay Tankers Ltd. (NYSE:TNK), the macroeconomic turbulence means that they have to focus on their fleet management and overall costs to keep investors happy. Additionally, on the flip side, if Middle Eastern geopolitical tensions subside, then the recovery tanker rates could be threatened due to excessive supply in the region. As a result, Teekay Tankers Ltd. (NYSE:TNK)’s management has to balance a tightrope if it is to run a ‘steady ship’ in the near term.
Teekay Tankers Ltd. (NYSE:TNK)’s management directly addressed these concerns during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“Recent events in the Middle East have the potential to further destabilize the region, which could impact oil production and shipping should they escalate further.
The full effects of any such disruption are uncertain, but they have the potential to further add to tanker market volatility in the coming quarters. Turning to fleet supply. New tanker deliveries are set to increase in 2025 and 2026 due to orders placed over the past 18 months to 24 months. However, at around 13% of the existing fleet, the global order book is still below the long-term average of 20%. Furthermore, forward order book cover at the major shipyards currently stretches three years or more with a lack of available shipyard capacity until the second half of 2027. In addition, the fleet continues to age with the average age of the tanker fleet currently the highest since 2002. As can be seen by the chart on the bottom right, number of vessels on order is still relatively small compared to future fleet replacement demand.
The combination of a modest order book, a lack of shipyard capacity and an aging fleet should ensure that tanker fleet growth remains at relatively low levels over the next two to three years. While the pace of tanker scrapping remains very low the past two years have seen a steady flow of vessels from the conventional fleet to the so called, shadow fleet of tankers servicing sanctioned trades, the majority of which are older vessels, which could – which would otherwise be approaching end of life. This shadow fleet now counts several hundred vessels, which generally operate at much lower utilization levels compared to the conventional fleet. While the future of this shadow fleet is uncertain, particularly in light of increased scrutiny and sanctions from both the U.S. and Europe, the migration of ships from the conventional fleet to the shadow fleet adds an extra layer to tanker market volatility.”
9. Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL)
14-day RSI Score: 25.50
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 18
Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) is an ocean carrier that transports dry commodities such as coal, grain, and fertilizers. The firm benefits from the fact that it is one of the largest operators of Capesize dry bulk cargo ships in the world. Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL)’s strength in the Capesize segment offers it the operating base to capitalize on a resurgence in global trade dominated by commodities. Yet, any slowdown in global trade, particularly for the reasons we discussed in our introduction, can end up negatively impacting the firm. Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) also benefits from being one of the only publicly traded firms with exposure to a large Capesize fleet. Its performance depends on global economic activity and particularly China’s role as a large commodity importer and exporter. Any uptick in global energy prices is also a headwind for Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL)’s shares.
Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL)’s management commented on fleet management during the Q3 2023 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“The Capesize fleet is aging, and over half of the Capesize fleet will be above 15 years of age in 2028, in a period where environmental regulations are tightening. Also, as seen from the fleet profile, the concentration of vessels required to dry dock in the two coming years is expected to reduce fleet capacity further than normalized distribution over a docking cycle.
We lastly see inflation in necessary investments to meet technical requirements, raising the bar for smaller operators of older tonnage. There has been unusually little weather disruptions in the port operations during the fall, which normally leads to delays and tightening of the dry bulk markets. The dry bulk fleet continues to operate highly efficiently with low congestion and only marginal Panama and Suez Canal exposure. The return of physical volumes setting the price of freight has seen a healthy rebound in rates in Q4 following a weaker period, very much as seen in 2023. It illustrates the underlying supply and demand balance in the freight market. We will round off with a reminder of our robust business model, low cost base, and modern fleet which continues to support the free cash flow and dividend potential in Golden Ocean.”
8. BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)
14-day RSI Score: 29.00
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 20
BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) is one of the largest telecommunications companies in Canada. The firm offers a variety of products and services such as broadband internet and television broadcasting to consumers and wholesale providers. As a result, BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) is operating in a rapidly dynamic market that is shifting to fiber and fixed wireless internet and video streaming services. The firm’s shares are down by 34.5% year-to-date driven by customer churn and a high debt load that investors would love to see resolved. During its quarter ending in September, BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) reported a whopping 76.8% postpaid customer drop for its wireless division. The firm also took a $2.1 billion impairment charge for its US Bell Media’s TV and radio properties. Therefore, resolving debt issues sits at the center of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)’s hypothesis as was clear in November when its decision to buy fiber firm Ziply led to the shares dropping by 9% as investors were disappointed that the proceeds would not be used to pay down debt.
BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)’s management believes that its postpaid churn isn’t as bad as it looks. Here’s what it shared during the Q3 2024 earnings call:
“While postpaid churn this quarter was up against the backdrop of elevated competitive activity relative to seasonal trends and higher than we’d like, it did represent a third consecutive quarter of deceleration in the year-over-year rate of increase.
So we’re moving in the right direction when it comes to churn. Prepaid net adds were up considerably versus last year, increasing to 69,085. This represents our best quarterly results since Q3 2019, and it’s a direct reflection of the strategy to increasingly address the Flanker and newcomer market with our prepaid brand. To close off on wireless, ARPU was down 3.4%. As expected, this result represents the accumulation of excessive rate plan discounting and promotional offer intensity over the past year. Until prices stabilize, we’ll continue to focus our efforts on delivering enhanced customer experiences and value and on improving wireless ARPU and margins. Although we believe that Q3 should be the peak quarter of decline, the magnitude and timing of ARPU recovery will depend on how aggressive Black Friday and holiday promotions will be this year.”
7. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)
14-day RSI Score: 23.85
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 24
Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) is a Greece-based dry bulk cargo carrier. The firm transports metals, minerals, fertilizers, grain, and other products with its cargo fleet. As a result, it depends on global economic health and friendlier trade between countries to generate tailwinds. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)’s shares are down 23% year-to-date as the firm has struggled on several fronts such as attacks on its ships in the Red Sea. However, the fact that it has 153 vessels in its fleet means that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) enjoys a significant moat in its industry. The firm’s merger with carrier Eagle Bulk in 2023 also expanded its fleet and allowed it to achieve more than $9 million in synergies. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) is also aiming to cut down costs by using efficient energy platforms for its operations, and should the cost tailwinds materialize, then the firm’s stock could benefit.
Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)’s management provided details about the new energy initiatives during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“Regarding our energy-saving devices retrofit program, we have completed 41 installations, with three more remaining for retrofit by the end of 2024. We plan to retrofit 126 vessels with ESDs within next year. The above numbers are based on current estimates around dry bulk and retrofit planning, lesser employment and yard capacity. Please turn to slide 10, an update on our fleet sales. On a vessel sales front, we continue disposing of vessels opportunistically at historically attractive levels. In 2024, we have sold 13 vessels for total gross proceeds of $233 million, reducing our average age and improving overall fleet efficiency. Following the rollout of the Eagle Bulk existing chartering contracts, we now have a total of 10 chartering vessels.”
6. Silence Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ:SLN)
14-day RSI Score: 26.93
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 25
Silence Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ:SLN) is a British biotechnology company. The firm develops genetically engineered medicines to target a variety of ailments such as blood cancer, liver diseases, kidney problems, and others. Silence Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ:SLN)’s shares have lost a whopping 60% year-to-date, with the losses driven by a sizable 60% dip in November prior to which the stock had lost 5.4% year-to-date. The sell-off started after Silence Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ:SLN)’s third-quarter results which saw its quarterly revenue drop by 59%, R&D expenses and operating expenses jump by 72% and 10.7%, and the net loss widen by 230% in an all-round set of weak results. The share price drop came even though while its shares were dropping, Silence Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ:SLN)’s data for its zerlasiran drug led to an up to 90% reduction in lipoproteins that are responsible for heart disease. Looking ahead, zerlasiran making it to phase two, and the firm’s blood cancer drug advancing in the trial phases can drive the stock forward.
5. TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD)
14-day RSI Score: 24.20
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 25
TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) is a British firm that primarily transports petroleum products such as gasoline, kerosene, and jet fuel through water-based routes. The firm has had a tumultuous 2024 so far as its shares are down by 36.9% year-to-date. This has come on the back of several global disruptions, out of which sanctions against Russian oil and energy products are the ones that have made TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) significantly transform its operations. The firm battled high costs in 2023 as it was forced to reroute its ships and European imports. 2024, which for the shipping industry has been characterized by hostilities in the Middle East, has seen shipping firms fend off attacks on their vessels. TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) has been hit hard particularly due to its reliance on clean petroleum product exports from the Middle East. These have struggled due to political tensions in the region.
Another factor that has harmed TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) this year is the Chinese economic slowdown. Here is what the firm shared during the Q3 2024 earnings call:
“A lot of talk on the oil market in recent months has been about China’s disappointing growth in oil consumption.
While the effect of the recent government stimulus package has yet to show in oil demand it is also important to point out that for the product tanker market, China’s market share is below 5%. However, China is important for us indirectly as China accounts for around 25% of global crude oil flows and hence has an impact on the crude tanker market. Please turn to Slide 7. The unusually large spread between product and crude tanker earnings that we saw earlier this year led to a cleanup of a number of VLCCs and Suezmaxes since the end of the second quarter. These accounted for 9% to 10% of the clean petroleum product ton-mile here in the third quarter, offsetting a large part of the incremental ton-miles. However, a seasonally improving crude tanker market is reducing incentives for crude cannibalization.”
4. XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP)
14-day RSI Score: 23.24
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 25
XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP) is a Brazilian financial technology company that caters to the needs of retail, institutional, and other investors. While it has a diversified customer base, most of the firm’s revenue is dependent on retail investors. This is evidenced by XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP)’s income statement for the third quarter which saw retail investors account for 77% of the firm’s gross revenue for the quarter. Within its retail revenue, 30% came through equities while an additional 27% was from fixed income. This is an important factor when analyzing XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP)’s hypothesis as equities and fixed income tend to thrive in diametrically opposed economic environments. To wit, the firm’s third quarter fixed income retail business grew by 31% annually to touch R$938 million while the equity component dropped by 6%. However, the sizable nature of its equities revenue means that XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP) depends on the strength of the Brazilian consumer and the economy to spur equities trading.
Despite its reliance on the retail sector, XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP) is also focusing on other investors. Here’s what the firm had to say about one such segment during the Q3 2024 earnings call:
“Lastly, transitioning from a product distribution firm to a service provider is key to differentiate ourselves from other players for the next decade. While competitors render financial planning to ultra-high private bank clients, we are offering to clients with 300K and above, which is only possible because of our tech-enabled platform. No other player in Brazil can do it on the same scale we are doing. We continuously keep improving our service and product offerings. And the combination of these levers are translating to a consistent retail net inflow, higher productivity, higher quality from a client perspective, and more profitability for the Company. Noteworthy that we received many questions regarding retail take rate direction. As we said recently, for the mid-term, we do not expect big change, and this quarter, it increased 4 bps marking 1.33%.”
3. Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD)
14-day RSI Score: 23.24
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 26
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) is one of the largest alcoholic beverage companies in the world. The firm enjoys one of the strongest moats in its industry as it has more than five hundred brands in its portfolio. The discretionary nature of its products means that Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) fires on all fronts when economic activity is robust and consumers have plenty of money to spend on drinks. Additionally, its scale, while offering significant competitive advantages, also places Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) at the mercy of shipping volumes and raw material costs. A weak global economy has also translated into poor share price performance in 2024 as the stock is down 17.6% year-to-date. The share price performance has been driven by several events, such as a second-quarter revenue and volume miss and a third-quarter revenue and profit miss. Firms like Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) also have to contend with a growing health preference in younger customers that might depress their sales over the long term.
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD)’s management shared key details about its volumes in the Americas during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“In the U.S., the beer industry remains resilient improving in both volume and revenue trends quarter-over-quarter. Our beer portfolio gained volume share of the industry, driven by Michelob ULTRA and Busch Light, which were two of the top three volume share gainers in the industry. Our improved market share trend and productivity initiatives drove EBITDA growth of 13.7% with a margin improvement of approximately 375 basis points. Our business in the U.S. is regaining momentum, and we are continuing to invest to fuel the growth. Now moving to Middle Americas. In Mexico, our volumes declined by low-single digits, outperforming the industry, which was negatively impacted by adverse weather in a slower economic environment. Revenue was flattish, and EBITDA grew by mid-single digits with margin expansion.
In Colombia, our business delivered high-single digit top line and double-digit bottom line growth with margin expansion. Beer volumes were flattish, while total volumes declined by low-single digits as the industry was impacted by a week-long national trucking strike in September. Our premium and super premium brands led our performance, delivering high teens volume growth. In South America, our business in Brazil delivered mid-single digit top line and double-digit bottom line growth with margin expansion of 174 basis points. Volume increased by 1.3%, led by our premium and super premium brands, which delivered volume growth in the low 20s.”
2. Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)
14-day RSI Score: 27.96
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 28
Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) is one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Since it has not capitalized on the hype surrounding weight loss drugs, the shares are down by 0.83% year-to-date as investor expectations are focused on its drug portfolio. Some of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)’s key drugs are its prostate cancer drug Pluvicto, heart disease drug Leqvio, leukemia treatment Scemblix, and breast cancer treatment Kisqali. Among these, Pluvicto has driven the narrative this year, particularly after Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)’s third quarter results revealed that the drug’s sales grew by a modest (in pharma terms) 36% annually after stripping away a pricing adjustment. Following the results, Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)’s shares fell by 2.6% during the day’s trading. However, the firm is optimistic for the future as it believes that it can grow sales by 6% through 2028 driven by Pluvicto in particular.
Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)’s management shared key details about the prostate cancer drug during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“Now, moving to slide 11, Pluvicto continued what we would characterize the steady performance in the post-taxane setting. Our focus at the moment is really laying the foundation for the PSMAfore launch in 2025, which would triple the number of patients eligible for Pluvicto. We saw 50% growth in the quarter. When you adjust for the one-time price adjustment in Europe, our sales growth grew 36%. Just to provide more context, that was true volume growth that we had in earlier quarters. As is always the case in certain European markets, our prices get adjusted over time. So, that was the reason for the uplift we saw in Europe.
Overall, we would expect quarter four to be broadly in line with quarter three excluding the RD adjustment. And I think for us now it’s really about preparing the market for Pluvicto PSMAfore opportunity. Our U.S. field force has now expanded. We’ve launched a DTC to drive HCP and patient awareness. We now have 530 treatment sites in the U.S., which we feel like covers the key geographic areas. We will continue to expand that over time quite significantly, but we feel comfortable that we have capacity now to fully support the Pluvicto PSMAfore launch and we’ll expand deeper into the community setting step-by-step. Our ex-U.S. launch is progressing well with good pricing and reimbursement discussions and so we feel very good about where we are to prepare for that launch next year.”
1. Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG)
14-day RSI Score: 26.87
Number of Hedge Fund Investors In Q3 2024: 32
Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG) is a Monaco-based shipping company that caters to the needs of the energy industry. The firm transports petroleum products such as crude oil and refined petroleum. As a result, its hypothesis depends on the global energy market, oil price, and economic performance of key regions such as China. Consequently, the fact that Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG)’s shares are down 22% year-to-date is unsurprising. Conflict in the Middle East has injected considerable uncertainty into the oil shipping industry, which has led to turmoil in tanker rates. Tanker rates fell to $12.34 in regions such as West Africa during August for their lowest level since hostilities started in October last year. The rates haven’t been helped by the fact that voyages from the Atlantic Basin to Asia have dropped, and looking ahead, rate recovery should be key in driving Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG)’s shares.
Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG)’s management commented on the rates during the Q3 2024 earnings call. Here is what they said:
“Product tanker rates remain well above historical averages and are at levels which the company generates significant cash flow. We expect this to continue. The ongoing strength in the product tanker market is the result of, one, demand consistently outpacing supply, two, increased ton miles as changes in refinery capacity have reshaped global trade flows, and three, geopolitical events exacerbating points one and two. Despite facing several challenges in the third quarter, including the end of summer driving season, elevated refinery maintenance, and competition from crew tankers, the fleet still averaged over $28,000 per day.
Notably, these rates have been achieved while undergoing a significant drydocking program. By the end of this year, we will have dry docked almost 60% of the fleet, increasing the efficiency and earnings days for next year. Looking forward, our outlook remains constructive. Rates have bottomed at very high levels. The market headwinds are becoming tailwinds, and it will not require much for rates to increase further. The risk is to the upside.”
STNG is an oversold stock that hedge funds bought in Q3. While we acknowledge the potential of STNG as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than STNG but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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