Over the past year, we have seen a number of stocks fall significantly even as the S&P 500 has held up and recently hit a new high. Until now, these stocks were generally the most economically sensitive sectors in the market such as transportation, industrials, retail, etc.
Now, however, we are seeing a shift in which the most popular growth names are also starting to underperform dramatically. Most notable of these is the underperformance of this year’s largest IPOs, a class characterized by fast-growing/money-losing venture capital favorites.
While the S&P 500 just hit a new high, these stocks are broadly plunging to new lows. Look at the performance of Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND), Uber (NYSE:UBER), LYFT (NASDAQ:LYFT), SmileDirectClub (NASDAQ:SDC) and Slack Technologies (NYSE:WORK). Not to mention the failed WeWork IPO.
Over the past few months and it’s clear a major shift is underway. These stocks are crashing. To me, this is the first real sign of the risk aversion that first appeared in the economically sensitive names spreading to other, more popular names. And it could have important implications for the broader stock market.