7 Stocks That Are Very Bullish

Stocks That Are Very Bullish: The past four months have been a roller-coaster ride for investors. Stocks reached historic heights and then plunged to shocking lows in a matter of weeks.

Many companies have started to recover, though some are still struggling to regain their footing. However, a select few are thriving under current market conditions.

They were in the right place with the right products and services at exactly the right time. That’s good news for investors who are looking for a few bright spots to shore up an underperforming portfolio.

These are seven stocks that are very bullish for consideration in your upcoming trades:

Appian Corp Has Been On A Tear

Cloud computing is well-established as a top-tier solution for business technology. Appian, founded in 1999, is a leader in enterprise software applications.

The company made a name for itself in 2001, when it developed Army Knowledge Online. At the time, this intranet was the largest in the world.

In recent years, Appian has focused on creating customizable bots that automate repetitive tasks. This technology benefits Appian clients by reducing errors, increasing efficiency, and ultimately, bringing costs down.

Appian has been particularly successful in the complex 2020 market, because it was able to roll out high-demand COVID-19 tools right away.

In March, when most organizations were just beginning to respond to the pandemic, Appian was already offering a free health management app that allowed clients to track the safety and health of employees.

As a result of this and other innovations, Appian stock prices doubled between the beginning of April and the end of May, which returned shares to their mid-February/pre-pandemic level.

Cardlytics Analyzes Consumer Spending Data

In today’s digital world, data is everything. Cardlytics has mastered the science of collecting and analyzing consumer spending data to create unique marketing tools that deliver unrivaled value to partner businesses.

Essentially, Cardlytics has partnered with major financial institutions to gather detailed information on who is making what sort of purchases – and where.

The company boasts that it has visibility into at least half of all card swipes completed in the United States. This sort of intelligence offers a substantial boost to marketing efforts in the B2C space.

Though Cardlytics’ first quarter results weren’t quite as impressive as business leaders, analysts, and investors had hoped, given the challenges of the current environment, the information delivered during the May earnings call was very well-received.

In fact, share prices increased 22 percent within hours of the announcement. Of particular note was the increase in revenue, 26 percent year-over-year, a 16 percent improvement in gross profit, and a remarkable 30 percent rise in the number of financial institution monthly active users. Together, these figures signify a promising future for Cardlytics.

Spotify Gained $5Bn Giving Joe Rogan $100M

Customization is the name of the game when it comes to digital entertainment. Consumers have made it clear that they want easy access to their favorite artists and genres, available anytime, anywhere.

Spotify has long been a leader in delivering music and podcasts on-demand, and it is particularly popular because it has both a free service and a premium subscription.

The company profits from ad revenue on accounts that don’t pay for the service, and it enjoys recurring revenue from the ad-free premium accounts.

Competition is a problem when it comes to music streaming. A number of big names, including Apple and Amazon, offer comparable services.

So far, it has been difficult for music streaming services to differentiate themselves from their peers. Unlike video streaming services such as Hulu and Netflix, there haven’t been many opportunities for music services to attract consumers with exclusive content.

However, Spotify is focused on changing all of that by investing in content other than music. For example, the company recently contracted with Joe Rogan, a popular podcaster.

By the end of 2020, his program, The Joe Rogan Experience, will only be available on Spotify. This move immediately drove share prices up to the tune of $5 Billion (yes a ‘B’) in a single day. If Spotify effectively executes on its content exclusivity strategy, there is every reason to believe investors will see continued rewards.

Meritage Homes Is No Ordinary Real Estate Company

The 2008 – 2009 financial crisis decimated the real estate industry. Building stopped outright, and home prices sank while foreclosures skyrocketed.

When the market crashed in March 2020, economists carefully monitored for signs of another real estate apocalypse. Fortunately, it never came.

This was in part because the underlying causes of the two crashes were quite different. It also helped that state and federal governments intervened immediately to prevent foreclosures and evictions.

Under those circumstances, certain real estate companies have been able to thrive despite the reduction in home buyers and sellers.

Meritage Homes Corporation stock prices dropped along with most others in mid-March, but the company has already regained those losses and then some.

Meritage builds single-family homes in the southern and western areas of the country, and it is regularly recognized for quality, customer service, and energy efficiency.

In the first quarter of 2020, Meritage reported that its net earnings had doubled, and year-over-year growth exceeded expectations across the board.

Management and analysts aren’t expecting these same impressive results for the second and third quarters, given the reduction in activity throughout the real estate market. However, as the larger economy recovers, Meritage expects to pick up exactly where it left off.

Wix.com Makes E-Commerce Simpler

A digital presence is no longer optional for today’s businesses. Companies that want to attract the attention of consumers must have a user-friendly website – preferably one that offers e-commerce and customer support – along with social media pages and other online tools.

Wix.com offers an intuitive website builder that makes it possible for anyone to join the virtual world, and it stands out from competitors because it is affordable and easy to use.

When Wix.com reported its first-quarter earnings in May, investors were pleasantly surprised. The company did better than expected due to increased demand.

Wix had the COVID-19 pandemic to thank for its unexpected increase in users, as consumers and businesses turned to the internet to manage daily activities while confined to their homes.

Immediately after the announcement, share prices increased by nine percent as investors responded to a 24 percent increase in revenue. Those figures are expected to continue their climb, as consumers and businesses create new sites and upgrade existing services in an effort to be prepared for future emergencies.

Square Makes Payments For Small Business Simple

One of the biggest obstacles for small and micro businesses has always been electronic payments solutions. The costs associated with traditional merchant services were a significant barrier to entry.

Square was one of the first to change that with the development of a card reader that operates with any mobile device.

Better still, Square now offers businesses of all sizes an entire suite of digital payment tools and resources, which simplifies e-commerce and makes it easier to manage financial activity.

The innovative features available from Square have put it in a leadership position among merchant services and mobile payment companies.

As the pandemic took hold and businesses went almost exclusively online, Square became a necessity more than a luxury.

First quarter revenue reports showed promise in that the company saw revenue increases of 44 percent – much higher than business leaders and analysts expected.

While it is hard to say exactly how re-openings will affect the company, it is likely that Square will continue its upward trajectory.

Zscaler Provides ‘Always Needed’ IT Security

IT security has never been more critical than it is right now. Cyber criminals have become more sophisticated in breaching infrastructure to access the enormous amount of sensitive information stored in the cloud, and most companies do not have the tools and resources necessary to prevent, detect, and stop an attack.

The issue has been amplified by the sudden move to virtual work, as many companies made the move without security-related preparation.

Companies that specialize in end-to-end security such as Zscaler have seen high demand as the number of work-from-home employees jumped. In fact, when the company delivered its most recent earnings report, results were significantly better than expected.

Stock prices immediately increased by 25 percent – the largest single-day gain in Zscaler’s history. That demand won’t go away anytime soon, so many investors and analysts expect further gains in the coming months.

Stock purchases never come with guarantees, and that is more true than ever in 2020. Given the unpredictable nature of coming economic conditions, buying shares in any company carries risk.

However, these seven seem to have mastered the secret of thriving in the current environment, making them smart choices for a well-diversified portfolio.

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The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Financhill has a disclosure policy. This post may contain affiliate links or links from our sponsors.