4 Top Jefferies Growth Stock Picks to Buy Now

By Lee Jackson Updated Mar 13, 3:00PM EDT · Published Sep 9, 8:15AM EDT

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The markets continued the large up-and-down pattern Tuesday with a strong surge higher. With many on Wall Street thinking that a rate increase has been pushed to December, and the Chinese currency devaluation and slow-down now largely priced in, this could be the time to add solid growth stocks to an aggressive portfolio.

In a recent research report, Jefferies has some top growth stock calls that the firm feels have outstanding upside potential for fall trading. We screened the stocks for those that are the “less-crowded” trades on Wall Street.

Edwards Lifesciences

This company pioneered the artificial heart valve and could be poised for big growth. Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW) provides products and technologies to treat structural heart disease and critically ill patients worldwide. The company offers transcatheter heart valve therapy products comprising transcatheter aortic heart valves and their delivery systems for the nonsurgical replacement of heart valves. The company also provides surgical heart valve therapy products, such as pericardial valves for aortic and mitral replacement and minimally invasive aortic heart valve systems, as well as tissue heart valves and repair products, which are used to replace or repair a patient’s diseased or defective heart valve.

The Jefferies team thinks that the company’s acquisition of privately held CardiAQ makes good sense going forward. CardiAQ has human implants of transcatheter mitrial valves, and Edwards is focused on the mitrial valve opportunity after their very strong success in aortic valves. The company also has had tremendous success with transcatheter valve replacement. Transcatheter heart valve replacements are rapidly gaining favor in the medical community for use in those patients who are deemed unsuited for open heart surgery, and they are a fast-growing revenue stream for the company.

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The Jefferies price target for the stock, which is only up 3% this year, is $180. The Thomson/First Call consensus price target is $171.40. The stock closed Tuesday at $139.68.
MasterCard

This company continues to be one of the top credit card players in the world. MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA) operates the self-described world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances easier, more secure and more efficient.

With an analyst meeting set for Wednesday, the Jefferies team believes the setup for the stock going into 2016 looks very promising, especially after the recent sell-offs. They expect the company’s net revenue to grow 11.8% next year, versus 2.2% in 2015.

The Jefferies price target of $112 is higher than the consensus target of $107.43. Shares closed up nicely on Tuesday at $92.90.

The Medicines Company

This stock shot up in late August and could be headed higher. The goal of The Medicines Company (NASDAQ: MDCO) is to be a leading provider of solutions in three areas: serious infectious disease care, acute cardiovascular care and surgery and perioperative care. The company is focused on saving lives, alleviating suffering and contributing to the economics of health care by focusing on 3000 leading acute/intensive care hospitals worldwide.

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The stock jumped last month when the company announced that an experimental cholesterol drug being co-developed with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals lowered LDL-C or “bad” cholesterol levels by around 83% in a small, early stage study. The drug, ALN-PCSsc, is an injected RNAi therapy designed to block the expression of the enzyme PCSK9, a protein that plays a critical role in regulating circulating levels of bad cholesterol in the blood.

The Jefferies team notes that the news is preliminary, and the product may not be on the market until 2020. They still like the overall prospects and raise the price target to $50. The consensus target is $43.29. The shares closed Tuesday at $41.20.

WisdomTree Investments

This is the real up-and-comer in the exchange traded fund (ETF) business and it is carving out an outstanding share with many specialized ETF offerings. Wisdom Tree Investments Inc. (NASDAQ: WETF) continues to benefit from the movement toward ETFs. This is especially true with the specialized currency hedged products, with the potential for significant uptake in interest rate hedged products.

Wisdom Tree is run by Jonathan Steinberg, the son of famous Wall Street financier Saul Steinberg. He is also married to Maria Bartiromo who became very famous on CNBC and now works for the Fox Business Network. Steinberg has a long and very distinguished ETF background, going back to the product’s infancy.

The Jefferies team point out that the stock was down 25% in just over a week. While unfavorable moves in the U.S. dollar could trim earnings by as much as $0.11 a share, and asset flows could be flat this quarter, trading at 19 times 2016 earnings makes the stock as cheap as it has been in over a year.

Wisdom Tree investors are paid a 1.88% divided. The Jefferies price target is $31, but the consensus figure is much lower at $22.88. Shares closed Tuesday at $18.08.

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The Jefferies analysts have zeroed in on some top growth stocks to buy that are not part of over-crowded trades or momentum hype. They are all posting solid earnings and could provide growth stock investors some serious upside potential.

About the Author Lee Jackson →

Lee Jackson has covered Wall Street analysts' equity and debt research and equity strategy daily for 24/7 Wall St. since 2012. His broad and diverse career, which included a stint as the creative services director at the NBC affiliate in Austin, Texas, gives him unique insight into the financial industry and world.

Lee Jackson's journey in the financial industry spans over 30 years, with nearly two decades as an institutional equity salesperson at Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and Morgan Stanley. His career was marked by his presence on the sell side during pivotal Wall Street events, from the dot.com rise and bubble to the Long Term Capital Management debacle, 9/11, and the Great Recession of 2008. This is a testament to his resilience and adaptability in the face of market volatility.

Lee Jackson’s practical financial industry experience, acquired from a career at some of the biggest banks and brokerage firms, is complemented by a lifetime of writing on various platforms. This unique combination allows him to shed light on the intricacies and workings of Wall Street in a way that only someone with deep insider experience and knowledge can. Moreover, his extensive network across Wall Street continues to provide direct access for him and 24/7 Wall St., a privilege few firms enjoy.

Since 2012, Jackson’s work for 24/7 Wall St. has been featured in Barron’s, Yahoo Finance, MarketWatch, Business Insider, TradingView, Real Money, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Benzinga, and other media outlets. He attended the prestigious Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and has a degree in broadcasting from the Specs Howard School of Media Arts.