‘Outright cheap’: JPMorgan says there’s a tactical buying opportunity in these global stocks

Once high-flying stocks have suffered a dramatic sell-off this year, but it could be time to buy the dip, according to JPMorgan. There’s now a short-term opportunity in so-called growth stocks, the bank said in a note on July 11. Growth stocks — such as the big tech firms — are expected to grow rapidly, though historically have looked more expensive than their “value” counterparts — such as financials and industrials — which tend to be priced cheaper than the rest of the market. “We entered the year with a key call of OW [overweight] Value vs Growth, and now believe that there is a tactical opportunity for Growth style to catch up with Value,” the analysts, led by Mislav Matejka, wrote. They noted that sectors including biotech, payments and “non-profitable Tech” were currently trading down between 50% and 80%, indicating that “many Growth groups appear tactically oversold.” Read more These global stocks have a track record of earnings growth — and analysts love them Morgan Stanley names its top stocks in a ‘safe haven’ tech sector — giving one upside of 60% ‘Kind of absurd’ valuations: Fund manager say buy the dip in these stocks “On [price-to-sales] metric, non-profitable Tech is closer to outright cheap territory, as are payments, after being at record highs a year ago,” it added. The price-to-sales metric is a valuation ratio that compares a company’s stock price to its revenues. JPMorgan screened for these global stocks that present a buying opportunity, but stressed that the companies are a short-term, tactical buy — not a medium-term call. “We see this as only a tactical opportunity for a bounce in Growth,” the analysts said. Tech names Two semiconductor firms made JPMorgan’s screen: Dutch companies ASML and ASM International , which are 45% and 52% below their 12-month peak, respectively. ASML is in a “sweet spot,” says the bank — given that it’s the sole supplier of extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) tools. The technology is critical in facilitating the production of advanced semiconductors. ASM International has significantly improved its position in the semiconductor capital equipment sector in the past couple of years, JPMorgan said. In addition, its position in the memory chip market is improving and it dominates the logic semiconductor market – tech that’s used to control the operation of electronic devices by processing digital data. Consumer stocks Sportswear company Puma made the screen, and is 45% below its 12-month peak. JPMorgan said the firm has some relative resilience underpinned by the sector’s structural growth drivers. The firm is also continuing to gain market share, and accumulate floor space within wholesale partners, the bank said. Sports betting and gambling conglomerate Entain made the list as well. JPMorgan says it has “solid positioning,” with strong branding and proprietary tech. Entain is 52% off its 12-month high. The bank’s screen involved a few criteria: the stocks have fallen at least 40% from their highs in the second half of 2021, have no debt problems and their structural earnings uptrend outlook is intact.