In this article, we will take a look at the 15 prominent NYSE stocks that hit 52-week highs this week. To skip our analysis of the recent trends, and market activity, you can go directly to see the 5 Prominent NYSE Stocks That Hit 52-Week Highs This Week.
The Wall Street ended another week in the green this Friday to mark eight consecutive weeks of market recovery since the last few days of October. The Core personal consumption expenditures price index rose by just 0.1% in November from October and was up 3.2% from a year ago. This compares to estimated growth of 0.2% and 3.4% respectively. The latest inflation figures support the broader market narrative that inflation is coming down which supports the optimism revolving around potential interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in 2024.
In our list of 15 prominent NYSE stocks that hit 52-week highs this week, nearly half of the companies belong to the financial sector, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS), and American Express Company (NYSE:AXP).
The financial sector was weighed down by the rapid increase in interest rates beginning from near zero before March 2022 to the current 5.25%-5.50% range, the highest benchmark rate in the country in 22 years. This led to the failure of several banks in the United States, including the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank with $209 billion assets, and Signature Bank with $110 billion assets, in March, and First Republic Bank with $229 billion assets in May 2023.
With improving macroeconomic conditions, the financial sector has rallied along with the rest of the market. The S&P 500 Index has gone up 15.5% during the last 8 weeks while S&P 500 Financials, a sub-index that represents financial sector stocks in the S&P 500 index, went up by 18.93% during the same period. The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit an all-time high on December 13 while the NASDAQ-100 hit its own all-time high earlier this week on December 19. You can read more about the recent resurgence in the market in our recently published article.
The companies on our list have benefited from multiple factors recently, including cost cutting measures, AI revolution, and macroeconomic factors such as slowdown in interest rate increases, among others. For instance, Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CUK) and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL), two leading cruise line operators, are benefiting from a resurgence in travel demand. One common factor though, is the resilience of these companies despite adversity which has resulted in their resurgence. The list also includes Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP), Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX), and Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET), among others.
A close up shot of a stock ticker reflecting the performance of Indian equity markets.
Methodology
To create our list of 15 prominent NYSE stocks that hit 52-week highs this week, we first identified the prominent NYSE-listed stocks that hit 52-week highs this week. For this purpose, we used Yahoo Finance’s Recent 52-Week Highs watchlist which discovers and lists the top 30 stocks, ranked by market cap, that have hit 52-week highs in the preceding week. We only retained ordinary shares of companies that are listed on the NYSE. The final step involved ranking the remaining stocks based on hedge fund sentiment. The stocks have been ranked in ascending order of hedge fund ownership.
Data from around 900 elite hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in the third quarter of 2023 was used to identify the number of hedge funds that hold stakes in each firm. Hedge funds’ top 10 consensus stock picks outperformed the S&P 500 Index by more than 140 percentage points over the last 10 years (see the details here). That’s why we pay very close attention to this often-ignored indicator.
15. Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE:MFC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 13
YTD Performance as of December 22: 22.76%
Toronto, Canada-based Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE:MFC) is a leading international financial services provider offering financial advice and insurance, operating as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. The company serves nearly 34 million customers.
On December 11, Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE:MFC) announced that it has agreed to reinsure to Global Atlantic four blocks of legacy/low ROE business, valued at nearly C$13 billion, including C$6 billion of long-term care reserves. The company expects the transaction to release C$1.2 billion of capital which it intends to return to shareholders via share buybacks.
As of Q3 2023, 13 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE:MFC) shares. Arrowstreet Capital was its largest hedge fund shareholder with ownership of 7.4 million shares valued at $136 million.
14. Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CUK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 15
YTD Performance as of December 22: 140.19%
Miami, Florida-based Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CUK) is a global cruise company and one of the largest vacation companies in the world. Its portfolio comprises of nine leading cruise brands including Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Cunard, AIDA Cruises, and Costa Cruises, among others.
On December 21, Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CUK) released the financial results for the quarter ended November 30, 2023. Its revenues increased by 41% y-o-y to $5.4 billion, while it generated a net loss of $48 million compared to a net loss of $1.6 billion. The normalized EPS for the quarter was recorded at -$0.07, beating the consensus by $0.06.
As of Q3 2023, Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CUK) shares were held by 15 of the 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, with the total hedge fund holdings valued at $208 million. Robert Henry Lynch’s Aristeia Capital was the largest hedge fund shareholder with ownership of 11.8 million shares valued at $144 million.
13. UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 16
YTD Performance as of December 22: 115.11%
Pontiac, Michigan-based UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) is the largest overall residential mortgage lender in the U.S. It operates exclusively as a Wholesale Mortgage Lender and only originates, underwrites, and closes mortgage loans arranged by an Independent Mortgage Broker.
On November 8, UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) released its financial results for Q3 2023. Its revenue decreased by 1% y-o-y to $677 million while its net income went up by 56% y-o-y to $18 million. Its normalized EPS of $0.15 exceeded consensus estimates by $0.07.
Following the earnings release, Barclays analyst Mark Devries initiated coverage of UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) shares with an ‘Underweight’ rating and a $4 price target.
UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) shares currently have a dividend yield of 5.62%, the highest on our list of 15 prominent NYSE stocks that hit 52-week highs this week.
12. Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 16
YTD Performance as of December 22: 110.43%
Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT) is a Detroit-based fintech platform company consisting of tech-driven mortgage, real estate, and financial services businesses – including Rocket Mortgage, Rocket Homes, Rocket Loans and Rocket Money.
On November 2, Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT) released its financial results for Q3 2023. It generated total revenues of $1.2 billion and a net income of $6.2 million. It EPS of $0.04 surpassed consensus estimates by $0.10.
On December 13, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analyst Bose George raised the price target for Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT) to $10.75 from $9.25 and maintained a ‘Market Perform’ rating for its shares.
As of Q3 2023, 16 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT) shares. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies was its largest hedge fund shareholder with ownership of 2.0 million shares valued at $16 million.
11. Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25
YTD Performance as of December 22: 90.50%
Santa Monica, California-based Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) is a technology company with three core products: Snapchat, a visual messaging app; Lens Studio, an augmented reality platform that powers AR across Snapchat and other services; and its AR glasses, Spectacles.
On October 24, Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) released its financial results for Q3 2023 which showed a return to positive revenue growth for the company. Its revenue went up by 5% y-o-y to $1.2 billion while it generated a net loss of $368 million. Daily Active Users increased 12% year-over-year to 406 million during the quarter.
The Board of Directors of Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) authorized a stock repurchase program of up to $500 million of its common shares with a 12 month validity period. The goal of the program is to offset a portion of the dilution related to the issuance of restricted stock units to employees.
As of Q3 2023, Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) shares, worth $897 million, were owned by 25 prominent hedge funds. Karthik Sarma’s SRS Investment Management was the largest hedge fund shareholder with ownership of 52.7 million shares valued at $469 million.
10. UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 33
YTD Performance as of December 22: 67.60%
Zurich, Switzerland-based UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS) is a multinational investment bank and financial services company. It provides financial advice and solutions to private, institutional, and corporate clients worldwide, as well as private clients in Switzerland.
Hedge funds are bullish about UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS) shares as the number of hedge funds that own its shares has more than doubled from 16 in Q4 2022 to 33 in Q3 2023. These hedge funds together held shares worth $483 million according to Insider Monkey data.
Patient Capital Management, a value investing firm, made the following comments about UBS Group AG (NSYE:UBS) in its “Patient Capital Opportunity Equity Strategy” Q3 2023 investor letter:
“During the height of the banking crisis, UBS Group purchased its largest local competitor, Credit Suisse, for an 80% discount. We bought after the deal, believing the market’s myopic focus on short-term integration risks failed to properly value the attractive set of assets. UBS Group successfully restructured its business in preceding years allowing the company to reach best in class return metrics, hitting a Return on Common Equity Tier 1 (RoCET1) of 17.5% in 2021, within their long-term range of 15-18%. While the integration of Credit Suisse’s assets will make the financials messy for the next few years, the company should come out stronger on the other side with a substantially larger wealth management business. Wealth Management will make up 68% of invested assets pushing them to be the number one global player ahead of Morgan Stanley. We estimate $4-6 in earnings power in 3-5 years, meaning you’re only paying 4-6x earnings for a premium asset with a 2.2% dividend yield. Despite the strong move, we continue to see attractive upside from here.”
9. Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
YTD Performance as of December 22: 86.51%
Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET) is a global cloud services provider that delivers a broad range of services to businesses of all sizes and in all geographies. Its network serves as a scalable, easy-to-use, unified control plane to deliver security, performance, and reliability across on-premises, hybrid, cloud, and software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications.
On November 2, Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET) released its financial results for Q3 2023. Its revenue went up by 32% y-o-y to $336 million while it posted a net loss of $39 million. Its normalized EPS of $0.16 surpassed consensus estimates by $0.06.
As of Q3 2023, 37 hedge funds held Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET) shares with a total value of $613 million. In its “Baron Global Advantage Fund” Q3 investor letter, Baron Funds, an investment management firm, made the following comments about Cloudflare, Inc. (NYSE:NET):
“Our fourth addition during the quarter was to the leading cloud-based networking and software infrastructure, Cloudflare, Inc. Despite continued elongation of sales cycles due to the macro slowdown, the company reported signs of stabilization and noted that the second quarter set a new record for pipeline generation, while deal close rates are improving and sales representative productivity is also moving in the right direction after the go-to-market changes the company implemented in the first quarter. Cloudflare also disclosed that it is benefiting from customers consolidating their spending on its platform.”
8. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 41
YTD Performance as of December 22: 159.38%
Miami, Florida-based Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) is a leading cruise company with a global fleet of 64 ships traveling to more than 1,000 destinations around the world. It owns and operates three cruise brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises, and holds 50% in a joint venture that operates TUI Cruises and Hapag-Lloyd Cruises.
On October 26, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) released its financial results for Q3 2023. Its total revenue increased by 39% y-o-y to $4.2 billion, while it generated a net of $1.0 billion. At $3.85, its normalized EPS exceeded the consensus estimates by $0.46.
As of Q3 2023, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) shares were held by 41 out of 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, with a total value of $1.4 billion. Prominent hedge fund shareholders included D E Shaw, Citadel Investment Group, and Renaissance Technologies, among others.
7. Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 49
YTD Performance as of December 22: 78.86%
Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) is the world’s largest alternative asset manager with over $1 trillion in assets under management including investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, infrastructure, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds.
On November 30, Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) announced the final close on $2.6 billion for its latest real estate secondaries fund, Strategic Partners Real Estate VIII L.P.
As of Q3 2023, 49 of the 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned shares of Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX), valued at $1.2 billion. Its largest shareholder was Thomas Steyer’s Farallon Capital with ownership of 2.2 million shares valued at $239 million.
In its “RiverPark Large Growth Fund” Q3 2023 investor letter, RiverPark Advisors, an investment advisory firm, made the following comments about Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX):
“Whatever the near-term brings for realizations, we continue to view Blackstone as offering an attractive risk/reward profile given its below-market valuation and consistent double-digit AUM growth driving recurring fee revenue growth, plus strong and consistent investment performance. Most of its capital is long-dated or even permanent (BX has $384 billion of permanent capital, 38% of its total), most of its fees (which are high-margin and recurring) are not sensitive to market fluctuations, and the company has billions of dollars of uninvested capital available to put to work (BX has $194.5 billion of “dry powder” or uncalled capital commitments, a new record). BX’s recurring fees provide a base of consistent earnings, while its opportunistic investing and harvesting add the ability to maximize investment returns, providing a strong foundation for long-term stock performance. Additionally, BX has a 3.1% trailing 12 months (“TTM”) dividend yield at the current share price.”
6. Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 55
YTD Performance as of December 22: 32.83%
Based in Dublin, Ireland, Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) is a global professional services company with leadership positions in providing digital, cloud and security. It employs more than 743,000 people and serves clients across more than 40 industries in more than 120 countries.
On December 19, Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) released its financial results for the quarter ended November 30, 2023. Its revenue increased by 3% y-o-y to $16.2 billion while it generated a net income of $2.0 billion.
During the quarter Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) repurchased $1.2 billion worth of its common shares and had $5.4 billion of remaining repurchase authorization at the end of the period. The company recently declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.29 per share which represents a 15% increase compared to last year.
As of Q3 2023, Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN) shares were owned by 55 of the 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, for a total value of $2.0 billion. GuardCap Asset Management was the largest shareholder with ownership of 1.8 million shares valued at $545 million.
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Disclosure: None. 15 Prominent NYSE Stocks That Hit 52-Week Highs This Week is originally published on Insider Monkey.
