Seven media stocks to buy now feature five new media standouts and two traditional broadcasting behemoths that investment experts assessed as potent candidates to beat the market during its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Heavy weighting of the seven media stocks to buy now toward social media companies shows that the giants of the past are not helped much by size alone as new media entrants have focused on becoming best-of-breed providers in their respective niches. A shared strength of all seven of the media stocks to buy now is that they will be able to compete for advertising dollars that had been slowing or left uncommitted with the U.S. economy sliding into a recession caused by COVID-19.
A positive sign about the economy surfaced when retail sales soared 17.7% in May to mark the biggest monthly climb since 1992, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. The jump more than doubled estimates of economists as states began easing coronavirus-related restrictions and trillions of dollars in federal stimulus started to take effect, following retail sales drops of 14.7% in April and 8.3% in March.
Facebook Ranks Among Seven Media Stocks to Buy
Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) is the media stock recommended by Jim Woods, who leads the Successful Investing, Intelligence Report and Bullseye Stock Trader advisory services.
“That stock is outpacing 97% of all other publicly traded companies in terms of relative price strength,” said Woods, who uses that measure as part of his premium Bullseye Stock Trader advisory service.
Woods, who also chooses recommendations with economist Mark Skousen, PhD, for the Fast Money Alert trading service that include call options, advised that Facebook is one of the social media companies that has become a popular target for politicians.
Facebook has been a “juggernaut” of late, with the stock spiking 11% year to date, and more than 56% since falling to its most-recent low on March 16, Woods told me.
The surge in Facebook shares has come despite falling ad revenue, Woods told me. However, the COVID-19 shutdowns are not normal, and shelter-in-place orders by governors throughout the United States have led to record social media use, he added.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
“But because of the contraction in the economy, there’s been a major contraction in advertising spending in all media — and social media is no exception,” Woods said.
Paul Dykewicz meets with Jim Woods before COVID-19 to discuss new investment opportunities.
Twitter Becomes as One of Seven Media Stocks to Buy
“If we do get an improving ad economy, I still like Twitter,” said Hilary Kramer, host of a national radio program called “Millionaire Maker” and head of the Value Authority and GameChangers advisory services. Even though Twitter does not pay a dividend, the company keeps growing and ultimately could emerge as a potential acquisition target, she added.
Kramer indicated she would not be surprised if “upfront” purchase of advertising is “dead” in a post-COVID-19 world.
Columnist and author Paul Dykewicz interviews money manager Hilary Kramer, whose premium advisory services include 2-Day Trader, Turbo Trader,High Octane Trader and Inner Circle.
Bob Carlson, chairman of the Board of Trustees of Virginia’s Fairfax County Employees’ Retirement System with more than $4 billion in assets, recommended broadcasting-focused Fox (NASDAQ:FOXA). Fox is the only one of the seven media stocks to buy now that pays a dividend. Its dividend yield currently is a respectable 1.59%.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
The stock has not fully joined the rally since the market’s March lows, said Carlson, who also leads the Retirement Watch advisory service. Fox further should benefit considerably from a rebound in sports-related programming, the resumption of new programming and the economic recovery generally, he added.
Pension fund Chairman Bob Carlson answers questions from Paul Dykewicz during an interview before social distancing became the norm after the outbreak of COVID-19.
Disney Joins List of Seven Media Stocks to Buy
Jessica Reif Ehrlich, an analyst at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, wrote optimistically about Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) in a research note on Monday, June 15, sticking with her buy rating on the stock but raising her price target 18.7% from $123 to $146.
Disney shares are trading at 21 times 2021 EPS and 19 times 2022 EPS, offering a “compelling entry point” to buy a best-in-class stock, Reif Ehrlich wrote. Investors should keep in mind Disney suspended its dividend for the first half of its current fiscal year that was supposed to be paid in July to save $1.6 billion.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
COVID-19 has caused 8,750,501 cases and 461,813 deaths globally, along with 2,296,809 cases and 121,402 deaths in the United States, as of June 19. America has more than twice as many cases and deaths as any other country, including China, where COVID-19 originated.
The seven media stocks to buy now offer investors an array of equities spanning established broadcasting giants and social media companies. Anyone following the Wall Street adage of “sell in May and go away” would have missed out on the market rebound in May, and the seven media stocks to buy seem poised to rise further in the months ahead.
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Paul Dykewicz, www.pauldykewicz.com, is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, USA Today, the Journal of Commerce,Seeking Alpha, GuruFocus and other publications and websites. Paul, who can be followed on Twitter @PaulDykewicz, is the editor of StockInvestor.com and DividendInvestor.com, a writer for both websites and a columnist. He further is editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C., where he edits monthly investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts, free e-letters and other investment reports. Paul previously served as business editor of Baltimore’s Daily Record newspaper. Paul also is the author of an inspirational book, “Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame’s Championship Chaplain,” with a foreword by former national championship-winning football coach Lou Holtz.The book is endorsed by Joe Montana, Joe Theismann, Ara Paseghian, “Rocket” Ismail, Reggie Brooks, Dick Vitale and many others.
