A shopper browses a selection of body boards outside a Five Below store in Bloomington, Illinois, on Wednesday, July 25, 2018.
Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images
As the U.S.-China trade dispute rolls on and the political storm clouds continue to swirl, there are some stocks that all investors must have in their portfolio, according to Wall Street analysts.
The S&P 500 is up about 1.8% this month so far but uncertainty remains.
CNBC looked through the most recent Wall Street research to find stocks that analysts say are a “must own” for clients. Stocks include Five Below, OneSpaWorld Holdings, Edwards Lifesciences, Dexcom, and Vertex.
While the threat of tariffs looms large over many retail stocks, one discount chain is bucking the trend.
“Five Below stands out as a compelling investment idea in an increasingly difficult consumer investment landscape,” Wells Fargo analysts said.
The firm called its tariff mitigation strategy “aggressive” and said among other things that the company has, “an attractive valuation that provides room for significant upside.”
“FIVE is a must own stock, in our view,” they said.
Shares of the company are up 0.18% on the week.
Dexcom is another “must own” stock, according to analysts at Piper Jaffray.
The firm recently held investor meetings with the company, which develops, manufactures and distributes continuous glucose monitoring systems for diabetes management.
Dexcom also said it expects to unveil its latest glucose monitor model called G7 in late 2020 and analysts are intrigued.
“Continuous glucose monitoring demand remains robust,” the analysts said.
“Longer term, we left the meetings with a lot more bullishness on the hospital market as well as the non-intensive Type 2 market where we do believe DXCM’s sensor technology will have an impact,” they said.
“DXCM remains a must own for investors.”
Shares of Dexcom were down 4.60% on the week.
If you’ve ever had a massage aboard a cruise ship, chances are the service was provided by OneSpaWorld Holdings.
The company provides spa services to cruise ships and global destination resorts and also recently held investor meetings for analysts.
“We walk away from our time with management still convinced OSW remains a must own stock both over the near/long-term,” analysts at Stifel said.
The firm called it the “ultimate free cash flow growth story within the cruise/travel segment,” and said it saw free cash flow growing around 20% a year over the next three years.
The stock was down 3.27% on the week.
Here’s what analysts say are “must own” stocks:
Stifel- OneSpaWorld Holdings, Buy rating
“We recently hosted OSW’s Executive Chairman, Leonard Fluxman, for a series of well attended investor meetings in London and NYC. We walk away from our time with management still convinced OSW remains a must own stock both over the near/long-term. OSW, in our opinion, remains the ultimate FCF growth story within the cruise/travel segment as we estimate FCF/ share will grow, on average, around 20%/year for the next three years, while trading at a reasonable multiple of 15x our 2021 FCF estimate.”
According to TipRanks, OneSpa is a Strong Buy consensus with an average analyst price target of $19 (20% upside potential).
Canaccord- Edwards Lifesciences, Buy rating
“Must own for at least another 3 quarters, then we’ll see how TMTT is trending – BUY, target to $250. Bottom line: We surmise EW common could top $250 by year’s end – largely owing to our call that EW could deliver accelerating TAVR growth through H2:19E, augmented by TMTT, to which we also see upside to current guidance. Consequently, we think large-cap investors should add to positions – yes, even with the stock bidding up 10% after a stellar Q2 print, commensurate to our preview.”
According to TipRanks, Edwards Lifesciences is a Moderate Buy consensus with an average analyst price target of $219 (0.16% upside potential).
Wells Fargo- Five Below, Outperform rating
“FIVE stands out as a compelling investment idea in an increasingly difficult consumer investment landscape. This premier growth story has a number of emerging catalysts that we believe make it particularly appealing into 2020, including: 1) An aggressive tariff mitigation strategy that could even be accretive to earnings over time. 2) The growing potential for the roll-out of Ten Below as early as next year. 3) A possible move to national TV advertising as early as Holiday 2020. 4) An attractive valuation that provides room for significant upside. FIVE is a must own stock, in our view.”
According to TipRanks, Five Below is a Moderate Buy consensus with an average analyst price target of $140 (9% upside potential).
Piper Jaffray- Dexcom, Overweight rating
“Late last week, we hosted investor meetings with DXCM’s EP of Strategy & Corporate Development, Steve Pacelli. First off, we do not believe the company was ‘walking down’ numbers at a recent investor conference. Continuous glucose monitoring demand remains robust and importantly G7 is only 12-15 months away. Longer term, we left the meetings with a lot more bullishness on the hospital market as well as the non-intensive Type 2 market where we do believe DXCM’s sensor technology will have an impact. We still expect some volatility around an eventual Libre 2.0 headline, but believe that impact will be short lived in nature and that longer term, DXCM remains a must own for investors.”
According to TipRanks, Dexcom is a Moderate Buy consensus with an average analyst price target of $175 (14% upside potential).
Cowen- Vertex, Outperform rating
“Vertex is a leader in the development of candidates to treat cystic fibrosis. .. .In a large cap universe of middling growth prospects, we think these fundamentals position Vertex as the ‘must own’ biotech for large cap growth investors. We expect Vertex’s stock to appreciate to our price target as the triple regimens approach commercial launch and Vertex’s non-CF pipeline generates proof-of-concept.”
According to TipRanks, Vertex is a Strong Buy consensus with an average analyst price target of $222 (29% upside potential).
