[cnxvideo id=”509258″ placement=”ros”]We are having trading days that some on Wall Street can become very scared of. Big moves up and down, with little or no real reason behind the selling other than more sellers than buyers. One thing is for sure, as pundits point to the “big back up” in Treasury yields, it is important to remember that the yield of the 30-year bond is just above the record lows printed back in February. Most likely the selling that is pushing yields higher is old-fashioned profit taking, in a Treasury market that is way overbought anyway.
We liked the list of Buy-rated stocks in a recent Jefferies research piece, as they are all good stealth plays. That is, they are top companies, under the radar, that have a big impact in their various sectors. Again, all are rated Buy at Jefferies, but it should be noted they are only suitable for aggressive growth accounts with reasonably good risk tolerance.
Gilead Sciences
This company is trading at an astounding multiple of less than seven times estimated 2016 estimated profits. Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) discovers, develops and commercializes medicines in areas of unmet medical need in North America, South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific. Its products include Stribild, Complera/Eviplera, Atripla, Truvada, Viread, Emtriva, Tybost and Vitekta for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in adults; and Harvoni, Sovaldi, Viread and Hepsera products for the treatment of liver disease.
Second-quarter total revenues met consensus and earnings-per-share beat on strength in Sovaldi/HIV franchise. 2016 product sales guidance was lowered. HCV sales missed due to pricing, unfavorable payer mix, lower patient starts and shorter treatment duration. Share buybacks are expected to be lower for the rest of 2016, and many on Wall Street think that could suggest willingness for pipeline acquisitions.
Jefferies thinks that a spin-off of the hepatitis C silo of the business is entirely possible as the declining predictable revenues have weighed on the company’s overall valuation. While not a given, a transaction could improve long-term growth and improve the positive impact of a future acquisition or pipeline success.
Its investors receive a 2.41% dividend. The Jefferies price target for the stock is $91, and the Wall Street consensus figure is set at $105.24. The shares closed most recently at $78.06.
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Teva Pharmaceuticals
This generic giant could be giving investors the best entry point in years. Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA) is a leading global pharmaceutical company that delivers high-quality, patient-centric health care solutions. It is the world’s largest generic medicines producer, leveraging its portfolio of more than 1,000 molecules to produce a wide range of generic products in nearly every therapeutic area. In specialty medicines, Teva has a world-leading position in innovative treatments for disorders of the central nervous system, including pain, as well as a strong portfolio of respiratory products.
The company integrates its generics and specialty capabilities in its global research and development division to create new ways of addressing unmet patient needs by combining drug development capabilities with devices, services and technologies.
The company acquired Allergan’s generic-drug business for $40.5 billion in cash and stock to bolster its position as the world’s largest maker of generic drugs. Combined with the largest generic pipeline in the United States, and the possibility that 2016 emerges as the inflection year for generic approvals, the stock makes good sense for more conservative investors.
Teva investors are paid a 2.25% dividend. Jefferies has a $69 price target for the stock, while the consensus target is $68.77. The stock closed Tuesday at $51.54.
VMware
Although still down from highs printed in the summer of 2015, the stock has rallied nicely off lows printed back in February. VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) provides virtualization infrastructure solutions in the United States and internationally.
The company’s virtualization infrastructure solutions include a suite of products designed to deliver a software-defined data center run on industry-standard desktop computers and servers, and support a range of operating system and application environments, as well as networking and storage infrastructures. Its solutions enable organizations to aggregate multiple servers, storage infrastructure and networks together into shared pools of capacity.
The Jefferies team cites the company’s strong balance sheet, with $8.7 billion in cash and short-term securities and a previously announced $1.2 billion stock buyback program that goes through the end of the year. They also point to the synergies in the deal with Dell, where it acquires EMC, which owns a huge position of VMware stock.
The Jefferies target price was increased to $89, and the consensus target is $73.04. The shares closed Tuesday at $73.11.
Wal-Mart
The giant retailer has acted very well since hitting a three-year low back in November of last year. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) operates retail stores in various formats worldwide, including discount stores, supermarkets, supercenters, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, home improvement stores, specialty electronics stores, restaurants, apparel stores, drug stores and convenience stores. It also operates via retail websites, such as Walmart.com and SamsClub.com. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam’s Club.
Each week, nearly 260 million customers and members visit the company’s 11,535 stores under 72 banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2016 revenue of $482.1 billion, Wal-Mart employs approximately 2.2 million associates worldwide.
Jefferies noted in its report:
Our August pricing work showed that Walmart continued to invest in price, particularly in the dollar store and grocery baskets, which contain high visibility food and consumable SKUs. Based on our recent conversations with WMT, we believe they remain pleased with the results and expect expansion of this initiative. We expect the price investments to continue and cost out initiatives should fund this, so we reiterate our Buy rating.
Wal-Mart investors receive a 2.8% dividend. The $86 Jefferies price target is well above the consensus target of $73.16 and the most recent close at $71.47 per share.
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None of these four stealth stocks were down Tuesday as much as the overall market. They are solid picks for investors that see the market grinding higher after the usual September/October weakness.
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