I joined Varney & Company this morning along with Nicole Petallides and Liz McDonald to chat about our favorite stock sectors and the dismal revised first-quarter GDP report.
Consumer discretionary stocks have gotten killed this year, as Liz reports, noting that 22 consumer discretionary stocks in the S&P 500 have issued profit warnings this quarter.
Looking abroad, I recommended avoiding the U.S. market altogether, focusing instead on Europe. The Eurozone is a couple years behind the U.S. in terms of both economic recovery and stock returns, and that is where the better bargains are today. I highlight Spanish stocks as a contrarian value buy, and recommend German stocks as a leveraged bet on a global recovery. Germany is the world’s premier high-end exporting nation.
Nicole Petallides carries the torch from there, noting that not all U.S. consumer discretionary stocks have performed poorly. Under Armour (NYSE:UA), Harman International (NYSE:HAR) and Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN) have all had solid returns this year. Later, Nicole recaps the recent action in the energy sector, highlighting one of Macro Trend Investor’s best performing stocks this year, Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB).
And our host, Stuart Varney? Stuart was a little distracted today with a major case of World Cup fever. It’s ok, Stuart, we understand. You’re English and it’s in your blood!
Disclosure: Charles Lewis Sizemore, CFA, is the editor of Macro Trend Investor and chief investment officer of the investment firm Sizemore Capital Management. Click here to receive his FREE weekly e-letter covering top market insights, trends, and the best stocks and ETFs to profit from today’s best global value plays.