Wall Street Analysts Say These 5 Stocks Are A Buy As The World Prepares For The Post-COVID-19 Era

From escalating tensions between the U.S. and China, the highly infectious coronavirus pandemic outbreak, and the 2020 presidential Election, this year has turned into a rollercoaster ride for investors. Forced lockdowns weighed down industries like the oil & gas sector, retail businesses, theatre, and entertainment companies, but spurred an uptick in technology stocks.With Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) reporting high efficacy for their COVID-19 vaccines but the number of new virus cases getting reported remaining high, the analysts are expecting a change in market behavior as the world moves to what they describe as a post-COVID-19 world.CNBC compiled a list of five stocks with an upside potential based on opinions from leading Wall Steet analysts. Here's a peek into these stocks and the key factors influencing the analyst forecasts.Amazon: The pandemic might have shrunk the global economy, however, Jeff Bezos' Amazon Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) rose to cross the $1.5 trillion market cap. The e-commerce company's stock peaked at a 52-week high price of $3,552.25 in early September.Amazon stock grew approximately 63% on a year-to-date basis and close to 91% since March when the signs of a pandemic became evident.Last week, Needham analyst Laura Martin rated Amazon as a buy -- setting a price target of $3,700, according to TipRanks. Based on Martin's survey results of a select number of Amazon customers, CNBC reported that 80% of the survey participants would stick to their online shopping trends even during the post-pandemic era.In the Q3 earnings release in October, Amazon reported $96.1 billion in revenue at a 37% growth rate year-over-year. Amazon last quoted $3,099.40, 0.57% lower, on Friday.Bentley Systems: RBC Capital analyst Matthew Hedberg revised software company Bentley Systems Inc (NASDAQ: BSY) as a "Buy" stock last week, with a price target of $43, CNBC reports. "Overall, we think a vaccine could benefit Bentley, and a Biden presidency could boost U.S. infrastructure spending," Hedberg commented.The forecasts were based on the company's earnings beat in its first release since the trading debut in September. In Q3, Bentley's $203 million quarterly revenues recorded a growth rate of 8.8% YoY with an 11% YoY growth in recurring revenues for the trailing 12-month period.The company, on Nov. 12, announced plans to issue 10 million shares at $32 per share and use the proceeds to pay off the outstanding balances of credit facilities. From $25.18 on Sept. 22, the stock has gained 41% and was last seen trading at $35.55, 1.22% higher.PDF Solutions: San Jose-based software and engineering services company PDF Solutions Inc (NASDAQ: PDFS) received a Buy rating from the Northland Capital analyst Gus Richard after the news of the $35 million Cimetrix acquisition broke out, as per the CNBC report. Richard raised the stock's price target to $30, last seen quoting $21.28.Richard says that "PDFS/ Cimetrix together can allow equipment suppliers to collect operational data from equipment and use PDFS big data analytics platform and AI to analyze equipment operational, performance, and process control data", as reported by CNBC.Accounting for the acquisition impact in the post-pandemic economy, Richard also anticipates that CY21 earnings could gain between $0.02 and $0.04 per share.Cytokinetics: At the end of Friday's trading session, Cytokinetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYTK) was trading at $15.99, 0.95% higher. H.C. Wainright & Co analyst Joseph Pantginis predicts that the biopharma company's stock holds a 180% upside potential, with an estimated price target of $43.The analyst's forecasts are pinned on the success of omecamtiv mecarbil, the company's treatment for heart failures."While a deeper analysis is yet to be conducted and more details are needed to clarify omecamtiv's real opportunity in HF, we believe these findings suggest a possible path forward for omecamtiv's approval based on its applicability for the treatment of a defined, significant, population," Pantginis said, as per CNBC.Yelp: Yelp Inc (NYSE: YELP), the San-Francisco headquartered online review company, has lost around 7% year-to-date. But, since March 18, when the lockdown measures began to kick in, the stock has rallied upwards by 123%.RBC Capital analyst Shweta Khajuria's analysis of the stock's performance is based on the economic revival in the post-pandemic era. Linking the vaccine availability and distribution with the economic revival, the RBC Capital Analyst opines that shopping centers, restaurants and bars, and other retail outlets would witness an increase in footfalls."Management expects Yelp to drive greater benefits from the improvement in its value proposition to advertisers, both perceived and actual to take a greater share of Advertiser budgets," CNBC quoted Khajuria as saying.On Friday's close, Yelp had a market cap close to $2.4 billion and was trading at $32.22, 1.19% higher.Latest Ratings for PFE DateFirmActionFromTo Nov 2020Goldman SachsReinstatesNeutral Nov 2020BernsteinInitiates Coverage OnMarket Perform Oct 2020SVB LeerinkMaintainsMarket Perform View More Analyst Ratings for PFE View the Latest Analyst RatingsSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Pfizer, Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines Could Get Limited EU Approval Before Year-End: Report * Sinovac COVID-19 Vaccine Trial Halted In Brazil Over Adverse Event(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Dow Jones Futures: Latest Bitcoin Play In Buy Zone As Tesla, Nio, Xpeng Fly; Apple Stock Breaks Support

In Monday's rally, new Bitcoin play PayPal cleared early buy points. Tesla and other EV plays soared. Apple broke key support.

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  Dow Jones Futures Rise On Latest Coronavirus News; Qualcomm Near Buy Point In Stock Market Rally; Apple Looks Tired

  Investor's Business Daily
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  Dow Jones Jumps 300 Points On Vaccine News, But Apple Slides; Tesla Surges To Record High, While Nio Races Higher

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3 Monster Growth Stocks That Still Have Room to Run

Investors are in the market to make a profit, and that means finding the stocks with proven growth potential. Yes, it’s a cliché to remind everyone that past performance does not guarantee future results, but when a stock consistently shows strong share appreciation, over an extended period, it’s a positive sign for investors.With more than ten months behind us, the stocks that are now showing a combination of strong gains and a high near- to mid-term potential are going to attract investor interest.Bearing this in mind, we set out to find stocks flagged as exciting growth plays by Wall Street. Using TipRanks’ database, we locked in on three analyst-backed names that have already notched impressive gains and boast strong growth narratives for the long-term. Bandwidth, Inc. (BAND)We start in the communications software sector, where Bandwidth is a leading provider of VoIP systems, using its application programming interfaces (API) to offer customers both text and voice capabilities. The company's products include applications for voice calling, text messaging, local phone numbers via internet, and 911 emergency phone system access. Bandwidth has developed and built its own network for voice over internet, helping to guarantee connectivity.Like many online tech companies, BAND has benefitted from the 2020’s shift to remote work. The move into the virtual office space has put a premium on internet communications, and BAND shares have reflected that – the stock is up an impressive 135% year-to-date. The company’s Q3 earnings were also strong – and at 14 cents per share were far above the 12 cent net EPS loss expected. Revenues for the third quarter came in at $84.8 million, for a 40% year-over-year increase.In addition to positive revenues and earnings, Bandwidth has also shown sound liquidity. The company had over $300 million in cash and cash equivalents available at the end of September, while liabilities totaled only $57.8 million.Finally, earlier this month, Bandwidth completed its acquisition of the European cloud communications company Voxbone. The deal was valued at 446 million Euros, or more than $520 million in US currency. The transaction included 354.6 million Euros in cash, and the remainder in stock.Bandwidth’s growth and healthy future prospects caught the attention of 5-star analyst Michael Walkley. Writing from Canaccord, this top analyst said, “With Covid-19 impacting the way we work, learn, and interact for the foreseeable future, we believe Bandwidth is a long-term beneficiary from anticipated strong growth trends due to increased customer usage of their platform. We believe revenue growth should remain strong given our expectations for some permanent long-term changes with an increased remote work environment driving both increasing usage from existing customers and layering in the potential for stronger new customer growth.”To this end, Walkley puts a Buy rating on BAND shares, and his $225 price target suggests room for nearly 50% upside in the next 12 months. (To watch Walkley’s track record, click here)Overall, BAND gets a Moderate Buy rating form the analyst consensus, based on 5 reviews, including 4 Buys and 1 Sell. The shares are priced at $150.50, and the average price target of $192.20 implies a one-year upside of ~28%. (See BAND stock analysis on TipRanks)Wayfair, Inc. (W)From cloud communications we move on to e-commerce, where Wayfair is a leader in the home goods and furniture sector. E-commerce has seen heavy gains during the COVID pandemic, as customers moved larger portions of their shopping online. The stock shows that, having grown 180% year-to-date.Earnings have also reflected strong sales during the pandemic period. EPS turned positive in Q2, coming in at $2.54 against a 55-cent forecast. In Q3, the earnings per share was $1.80, beating the estimate by 300%. Revenues are high, too, with the $3.8 billion in Q3 representing a 66% year-over-year gain. And like Bandwidth above, Wayfair has a sound balance sheet, with $2.6 billion in cash and liquid assets reported at the end of the third quarter.These fiscal gains stand on the shoulders of solid sales performance. Wayfair reported 11.3 million orders from repeat customers in Q3, making up almost 72% of the quarter’s total orders. Active customers in the company’s Direct Retail business segment increased 50% yoy, and reached 28.8 million.Peter Keith, 5-star analyst with Piper Sandler, writes of Wayfair, “Looking forward, KPI's repeat customers (% of orders) and revenue per average customer (LTM) both hit all-time highs and suggest Wayfair will grow revenues nicely off a larger base of customers… We maintain our bullish thesis as above-trend sales growth is likely to persist at least into early 2021, and margins are expanding far above expectations – with longer-term drivers coming into focus."It should come as no surprise, then, that Keith stays with the bulls. In addition to an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating, he left a $370 price target on the stock. Investors could be pocketing a gain of 47%, should this target be met in the twelve months ahead. (To watch Keith’s track record, click here)Overall, Wayfair has 20 reviews on record, including 10 Buys, 7 Hold, and 3 Sell, making the analyst consensus view a Moderate Buy. W stock is selling for $251.70 and has an average price target of $312.63, making the upside potential 24% for the coming months. (See Wayfair’s stock analysis on TipRanks)Schrodinger (SDGR)Last but not least is Schrodinger, a software company that develops applications for the life sciences and materials sciences industries. In short, the company builds the software platforms that allows customers to evaluate experimental compounds. Schrodinger describes its software as a physics-based platform, integrating solutions for collaboration, data analytics, and predictive modeling in chemistry. The platform is used extensively in the pharmaceutical industry, but also in aerospace, energy, and semiconductors.Schrodinger went public in February of this year, just as the corona crisis was ramping up, and quickly saw strong share gains. At the IPO, the stock sold for $26 per share, well above the initial pricing of $17. The company sold well over 11.8 million shares, making the opening one of the year’s most successful. Since then, SDGR shares have more than doubled, gaining nearly 140% in their first nine months of public trading.Revenues have remained consistent during the year, with the first three quarters of 2020 showing the top line between $23 and $26 million. The Q3 number, at $25 million, is right in the middle of that range. The Q3 top line beat the forecast by 10%Covering this stock for BMO, 5-star analyst Do Kim writes, “We believe the 42% y/y growth in software revenues reflects the accelerating adoption of computational drug discovery, in addition to a growing customer base. We expect software growth to continue into 2021, as we believe the pandemic trend of remote work is sticky, with increasing platform validation from collaborations.”In line with this upbeat outlook, Kim rates SDGR shares an Outperform (i.e. Buy) along with a $94 price target. This figure indicates confidence in a 37% one-year upside potential. (To watch Kim’s track record, click here)All in all, Schrodinger’s Strong Buy consensus rating is based on 3 Buys and 1 Hold. The stock has an average price target of $83, giving it a 21% upside from the current trading price of $68.52. (See SDGR stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for growth stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.