After the collapse of the US stock markets in 2018, 2019 was a year that many predictors were wrong. The economy remained strong, markets shot up and stocks continued their decade-long expansion.
This happened despite several warnings from analysts for an impending recession after the interest rate curve turned around in the summer and produced one of the biggest signals that growth was about to turn negative.
Below we have compiled a list of three popular stocks that showed their strength in 2019 despite their varying opportunities. Their performance this year also shows investors' willingness to take risks in an environment when they return on other asset classes, and the central bank stands ready to lower interest rates if the economy shakes.
1. Tesla
Tesla & # 39; s (NASDAQ 🙂 shares finally broke its bearish spell in October after many missteps by founder and CEO Elon Musk. The share of the electric car maker climbed to a record high on Friday and closed at $ 405.59. They have risen more than 55% since the company reported a surprise gain on October 23.
At the end of the year, the news stream became supportive of this rally, although in 2019 investors saw Musk's failed attempt to keep the company private, his fight with regulators and many broken promises. Musk, a man often praised as one of the country's most innovative CEOs, had almost become a self-destructive liability for Tesla.
The current peak in its shares began when the company delivered positive for the third quarter, in which it earned $ 1.86 in equity gains, amply outperformed the most optimistic projection and the consensus estimate for a loss of $ 0.24 defeated. a new factory in China and which will launch its Model Y crossover much earlier than previously reported. Tesla is likely to end the year well above the 12-month consensus price target of $ 293 per share and with the majority of analysts still a negative rating on the share.
2. General Electric
Contested industrial giant General Electric (NYSE 🙂 analysts saved when the company pursued a turnaround after a disastrous 2018 in which the stock price plummeted and demand for its products plummeted.
After trading below $ 10 for most of the year, the stock began a surprise rally in early October. Trading at $ 11.03 at the end of Friday, the shares won more than 50% in 2019, indicating that the new management's restructuring plan is working.
General Electric Weekly Price Chart
The big boost this year came when GE reported its third quarter in November, showing that his cash flow situation is improving and some of his industrial units are beginning to show signs of life.
That achievement is something the new CEO of the company, Larry Culp, has been promising since he took over more than a year ago. What excited investors this time is the company's improved cash flow forecast for 2019 – the second consecutive quarter that GE was able to do, helped by some a revival in some of its industrial activities.
Despite these positive signals, analysts remain divided over GE and the future still looks uncertain. J.P. Morgan, the largest GE bear who accurately predicted his stock collapse three years ago, currently has a $ 5 price target on equity. The analysts said in a recent note that they do not believe that GE's "management has set a ground for the performance of its companies," and added that "GE is not missing guidance on the EBIT of the core business identified in March "
3. Apple
Who would have thought that 2019 would be one of the best years for investors in Apple (NASDAQ :)? In the group of fast-growing technology stocks that include Facebook (NASDAQ :), Amazon (NASDAQ :), and Netflix (NASDAQ :), Apple won the most, so far by around 80%. The shares closed at $ 279.44 on Friday.
For the California-based iPhone maker, 2019 was an extremely worrying year as it faced a slowing demand for its flagship product, while the macro environment became hostile after the US and China were embroiled in a long trade war.
With 20% of the company's sales from China, where it has also developed a huge network of suppliers, Apple was faced with a direct threat to its business from the perspective of rising rates and tit-for-tat retaliation.
Apple started the new year with a price drop of more than 30% from the record high it reached in August 2018. As 2019 progressed, however, it became clear that the consumer engineer had a huge amount of ammunition to face the challenging challenges that the trade dispute created.
The launch of the iPhone 11 company received a fantastic reception, while service activities, including Apple Music, movie rentals and app downloads, continued to grow. In the last part of the year, the Apple share received strong support from analysts for the expected rollout of fifth-generation phones or 5G in 2020. Wall Street analysts expect the company to be in the fiscal year ending September 2021.
Bottom Line
Tesla, GE and Apple are three examples of how stocks can surprise and even surprise markets, with extraordinary innovation, or hard-won turnarounds or even, like with Apple (NASDAQ :), the sheer power of a big brand to shape even negative events to their own advantage. These three companies will end 2019 at a high point that seemed impossible at the start of the year and 2020 now looks much more positive for each of them.
