The 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, also known as March Madness, or the Big Dance, kicks off this week. The college basketball extravaganza – a slate of 67 games played over 19 days in Indiana – begins on Thursday, with the championship game on Monday, April 5.
Last year's NCAA tournament was one of the first of several major sports-related events in the US to be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. As such, the 2021 edition of March Madness could potentially be more popular than ever, given pent-up demand for the event.
In the spirit of March Madness, here are three stocks that are likely to be among the standout winners when the Big Dance kicks off.
1. DraftKings
This year's March Madness tournament is expected to be the most daring sporting event in history. According to projections from industry group PlayUSA, the 2021 NCAA tournament could generate anywhere from $ 1 billion to $ 1.5 billion in legal bets.
Unlike other popular sports betting events such as the Super Bowl or the World Cup Final, the NCAA tournament benefits from having multiple games to bet on.
That should bode well for DraftKings, (NASDAQ :), whose share has soared in recent months as Americans flocked to the sports betting platform after more states legalized online sports gambling.
Shares of the Boston, Massachusetts-based sportsbook operator – publicly available through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) since April last year – are up about 44% so far this year, compared to earnings of 5.5% over over the same timeframe.
The DKNG stock closed at $ 67.14 on Tuesday after hitting a record high of $ 74.07 late last week. At its current level, DraftKings is valued at $ 26.6 billion, making it the most valuable company in the sports betting industry.
With betting at this year's NCAA tournament expected to hit new peaks, DraftKings' stock is well positioned to continue its march in the days and weeks ahead.
Honorable Mentions: Penn National Gaming (NASDAQ :), Flutter Entertainment (OTC :), MGM Resorts (NYSE 🙂
2. Coca-Cola
As one of the three main sponsors of the NCAA tournament – along with AT&T (NYSE 🙂 and Capital One Financial (NYSE 🙂 – the iconic Coca-Cola (NYSE 🙂 brand is expected to be one of are the main beneficiaries of this year's March Madness event.
Coca-Cola is an official NCAA "Corporate Champion" partner, which means that their in-arena ads and TV spots will appear regularly during the tournament.
That should bode well for sharing the spirit of the beverage giant, which directly correlates with the development of positive consumer awareness and popularity.
Not surprisingly, London-based Brand Finance, a brand evaluation company, recently ranked Coca-Cola as the strongest brand in the US, overtaking Disney's (NYSE 🙂 top spot, overtaking names like Apple (NASDAQ: ), and Amazon (NASDAQ :).
It is also worth noting that Coca-Cola owns Powerade, the official March Madness sports drink. As in previous years, Powerade offers limited edition 28 ounce commemorative bottles with the numbers 0-99, giving consumers an option that matches their own shirt number.
Shares of the Atlanta, Georgia-based soft drink giant got off to a rocky start in 2021, declining nearly 7% since the start of the year as the COVID-19 outbreak negatively impacted Coca sales. Cola products around the world. KO shares settled at $ 51.22 yesterday, earning a valuation of $ 223 billion.
In addition to the potential tailwind from March Madness, Coca-Cola is also expected to gain a lift as the pandemic abates and more restaurants and leisure establishments reopen in the coming weeks.
Honorable Mentions: Domino & # 39; s Pizza (NYSE :), Yum! Brands (NYSE :), Papa John & # 39; s Pizza (NASDAQ 🙂
3. ViacomCBS
Any discussion of March Madness stock would be incomplete without ViacomCBS ( NASDAQ :), the network that broadcasts most of the tournament's 67 national television games, including the most watched ones.
CBS – hosted the NCAA Tournament since 1982 – will air both Final Four games scheduled for the last weekend of the Big Dance, as well as the National Championship game, which is expected to be around 15 million viewers.
As such, the media entertainment company has a lot to gain from ad revenue during the March Madness coverage, which can sometimes charge more than $ 1.5 million for a 30 second commercial spot.
ViacomCBS got off to a great start to the year, up about 158% so far in 2021, as investors piled up the name amid optimism surrounding its new streaming service called Paramount +.
The VIAC stock ended last night at $ 96.24, just below its all-time high of $ 101.85 reached at the beginning of the week. The New York City-based media conglomerate has a market cap of $ 54.2 billion.
If this year's NCAA tournament does indeed score unusually high ratings, one of the biggest winners will be the VIAC stock.
Honorable Mentions: AT&T T, Fubotv (NYSE 🙂
