The S&P 500 Index wrapped up its best week since July, climbing 1.8% on encouraging quarterly earnings releases from several companies.
Major banks like Citigroup
C
, Goldman Sachs
GS
and Bank of America
BAC
came up with an earnings beat last week. Freight deliverer J.B. Hunt Transport Services
JBHT
reported stronger-than-expected profits while Alcoa
A
beat earnings expectations and announced a dividend payment and buyback of its stock.
Additionally, upbeat retail sales data uplifted investors’ sentiment. U.S. retail sales unexpectedly rose 0.7% in September, suggesting that Americans continued to spend at a solid clip despite the rising inflation. People splurged on new clothes for the back-to-school season or for their return to office while sales at restaurants and bars also rose.
Americans are still willing to buy new cars even with dealerships running short on supply and manufacturers shutting down factories due to a lack of essential computer chips. All these suggest good times ahead of the holiday season (read:
Ride the Latest Market Rally With These ETFs
).
Against such a backdrop, the proxy version of the S&P 500 Index,
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust
SPY
, also gained 1.8% last week. Let’s take a closer look at the fundamentals of SPY and its best stocks:
Inside the SPY
The ETF holds 505 stocks in its basket with each accounting for no more than 6.04% of assets. This suggests a nice balance across each security and prevents heavy concentration. The fund is widely spread across sectors with information technology, healthcare, consumer discretionary, financials and communication services accounting for a double-digit allocation each. It has AUM of $389.3 billion and charges 9 bps in fees per year. The product trades in heavy volume of around 68 million shares a day on average, ensuring higher liquidity with a tight bid/ask spread, leading to lower trading costs for investors (see:
all the Large Cap Blend ETFs here
).
SPY has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy) with a Medium risk outlook. Though most stocks in the fund’s portfolio were in green last week, we have highlighted five stocks that gained in double-digits and led the rally:
Best-Performing Stocks of SPY
FreeportMcMoRan Inc.
FCX
:
It is engaged in mineral exploration and development; mining and milling of copper, gold, molybdenum and silver; as well as the smelting and refining of copper concentrates. It gained 13.2% last week and has an estimated earnings growth rate of 437% for this year. The stock has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and a VGM Score of A. You can see
the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here
.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc.
JBHT
:
This company is a provider of a broad range of transportation services to a diverse group of customers through the United States, Canada and Mexico. The stock gained 12.2% last week and has expected earnings growth of 40.1% for this year. It has a Zacks Rank #3 and a VGM Score of B.
Enphase Energy Inc.
ENPH
:
It is a global energy technology company that delivers energy management technology for the solar industry. The stock climbed 12% and has an estimated earnings growth rate of 53.3% for this year. It has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and Growth Score of A (read:
5 Best ETFs & Stocks of the Top Performing Energy Sector
).
Generac Holdings Inc.
GNRC
:
It is a leading manufacturer of power generation equipment, energy storage systems and other power products including portable, residential, commercial and industrial generators. It jumped 11.1% last week and saw positive earnings estimate revision of a penny for this year over the past week. Generac Holdings has a Zacks Rank #3 and VGM Score of B.
Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.
APD
:
This company makes industrial gases as well as a variety of polymer and performance chemicals. It also supplies processing equipment. It gained 10.3% last week and has an estimated earnings growth rate of 19.04% for the fiscal year (ending September 2022). The stock has a Zacks ETF Rank #4.
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