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2 ‘Strong Buy’ Stocks Poised for Growth
Will the Democrats be detrimental to the stock market? No, the pros on Wall Street say.Although some investors have expressed concern about how the president-elect’s policies will affect stocks, as well as the impact of a potential “blue wave,” which is a Democrat controlled White House, Senate and Congress, historically, analysts argue stocks have outperformed regardless of which political party controls the White House or Congress.Looking at data from the last 78 years, party control has had a limited effect on the broader S&P 500. Beginning in 1942, data demonstrates that Republican and Democratic majorities in the House and Senate have had little impact on share prices in the two-year period after an election. The same is true when comparing the number of party seats gained or lost in the House and Senate to stock prices for the S&P 500 during that period. Similar results are seen for the November to November cycle, which is a gauge of market sentiment to the election.Taking all of this into consideration, we used TipRanks’ database during our search for compelling plays. Locking in on two in particular, the platform identified two stocks that have received overwhelmingly bullish praise from the Street, enough to earn a “Strong Buy” analyst consensus.PulteGroup (PHM)Atlanta-based PulteGroup is the third-largest home construction company in the US, bringing in some $10 billion in annual revenues. The economic expansion seen during the last three years was good for the company, as growth in wages and expansion of the jobs market put money in people’s hands.The COVID-19 pandemic hit during the first quarter of the year, and PulteGroup did see earnings and revenues fall – but Q1 is historically the company’s slowest of the year, with the top and bottom lines both rising through Q4. Not only has PHM continued to follow that pattern, but quarterly results in 2020 have consistently beaten expectations and come in with year-over-year gains. In Q3, the most recently reported, EPS was $1.34, the highest in over two years, on revenues of $2.95 billion.Looking at the share price, PHM fell in February/March, along with the overall markets, but the stock has been gaining since. PHM hit bottom on March 23, and over the past seven and a half months has rebounded 148%.Covering PHM for RBC Capital, analyst Michael Dahl wrote, “While growth is currently all the rage, PHM’s balanced and return-driven model historically commands a stronger premium and we expect this to return in coming months as investors shift focus given the more difficult comps, community count trends, and inflationary pressures across the peer group. Importantly, PHM remains well positioned on land with>7 years controlled (53% owned, 47% optioned), which is a positive in a land-constrained and inflationary environment; coupled with pricing power, this should allow it to maintain GM >24%.”Dahl rates the stock an Outperform (i.e. Buy) and his $53 price target suggests an upside of 22% for the coming year. (To watch Dahl’s track record, click here)Overall, PulteGroup holds a Strong Buy rating from the analyst consensus, based on 6 Buys and 2 Hold set in recent weeks. The stock’s $43.12 trading price and $55.67 average price target imply a one-year upside of 22.5%. (See PHM stock analysis on TipRanks)Dynatrace, Inc. (DT)With our second stock, we move into the world of AI. Dynatrace is an AI company offering cloud platforms that monitor and manage business software. The company’s AI can handle the infrastructure on system architecture and cloud software, making it a one-stop tool for network manages seeking to minimize system strain.Dynatrace’s products have only grown in popularity during the coronavirus crisis. As white-collar offices make a strong shift toward remote work and virtual desktops, strong systems management has become a valuable commodity. Since bottoming out in mid-March, DT shares have showed investors a healthy rebound. The stock is up 90% since March lows.Covering this stock for Needham, Jack Andrews describes Dynatrace as the right company in the right niche at the right time.“[As] release cycles accelerate and services become hybrid, the demand for DT grows due to the increasing complexity of enterprise systems… DT’s platform provides automation/AI to dynamically alert and monitor the topology of systems… We believe DT’s product-fit may enable it to capture a large mix of these AI-driven enterprise workloads as it replaces incumbent tool and as customers expand to additional modules,” Andrews opined.In line with his comments, Andrews assigns DT a Buy rating, and his $50 price target indicates his confidence in a one-year upside of 61%. (To watch Andrews’ track record, click here)Overall, Wall Street loves this stock, earning a stellar analyst consensus rating, as TipRanks analytics demonstrate DT as a Strong Buy. Out of 11 analysts tracked by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 10 are bullish, while only 1 remains sidelined. With a return potential of nearly 34%, the stock’s consensus target price stands at $50.36. (See DT stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
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