The Nasdaq has been absolutely obliterated this year, down a stunning 21.2%, which puts the tech-heavy index firmly in bear market territory. One of the biggest reasons is indeed the large tech influence of the index, but another plain and simple fact is that many of the top stocks were horribly overbought, pushed to absurd levels by the FOMO (fear of missing out) crowd.
After a dreadful April that saw the index decline by 13.3%, many are concerned that the path of least resistance is lower. We decided to screen the index looking for the highest-yielding stocks and found that they all have some solid defensive qualities, and they are offering among the best entry points that each has provided in some time.
Four of the five are rated Buy across Wall Street, and all make sense for investors looking for value and upside potential. It is important to 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 skeletalelated 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 3.33% dividend. Oppenheimer has a $285 target price on Amgen stock, and the consensus target is $246.94. The final trade for Monday came in at $230.92 a share.
Gilead Sciences
This is another beaten-down biotech that is trading a very reasonable 9.05 times estimated 2022 earnings and has big-time upside potential. Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) is a research-based biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe and elsewhere.
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