All the top Wall Street firms that we follow here at 24/7 Wall St. keep a list for their institutional and retail clients of high-conviction stock picks. These are generally the companies they not only like for the longer term, but those that usually have big upside to the assigned target prices.
Since the beginning of the year, many of these firms have tweaked their lists of top stocks to buy regularly to account for continued changes in 2023. With fourth-quarter earnings reports still pouring in, we decided to screen the Jefferies Franchise List of top stock picks, looking for those with among the biggest dividends.
The following six stocks hit our screen. Despite the strong January rally, it probably makes sense for investors to take a cautious stance for the rest of the year, as there is a widespread belief that the current move higher is a result of massive short covering. While these six stocks are rated Buy at Jefferies and are the highest conviction ideas, remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.
Amgen
This biotech giant remains a safer way to play the massive potential growth in biosimilars. Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) discovers, develops, manufactures and delivers human therapeutics worldwide. It focuses on inflammation, oncology/hematology, bone health, cardiovascular disease, nephrology and neuroscience.
The company’s products include the following:
- Enbrel to treat plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis
- Neulasta reduces the chance of infection due a low white blood cell count in patients with cancer
- Prolia to treat postmenopausal women with osteoporosis
- Xgeva for skeletal-related events prevention
- Otezla for the treatment of adult patients with plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and oral ulcers associated with Behcet’s disease
- Aranesp to treat a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells and anemia
- Kyprolis to treat patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma
- Repatha, which reduces the risks of myocardial infarction, stroke and coronary revascularization
Shareholders receive a 3.36% dividend. Jefferies has a $325 target price on Amgen stock. The consensus target is just $270.03, and the final trade for Monday came in at $251.59 a share.
Baker Hughes
This stock makes sense for investors looking for energy exposure via services. Baker Hughes Co. (NYSE: BKR) provides a portfolio of technologies and services to the energy and industrial value chain worldwide.
The company offers exploration, drilling, wireline, evaluation, completion, production and intervention services, as well as drilling and completions fluids, wireline services, downhole completion tools and systems, wellbore intervention tools and services, pressure pumping systems, oilfield and industrial chemicals, and artificial lift technologies for oil and natural gas and oilfield service companies.
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