49 U.S. stocks that surged at least 20% in the third quarter
This article was originally published on Sept. 30. It has been updated to reflect closing information for the last day of the third quarter.
Despite a lengthy list of challenges — a drop in earnings at U.S. companies, high valuations for stocks, concern about rising interest rates — the benchmark S&P 500 Index rose more in the third quarter than it did in the first half of the year.
The S&P 500 SPX, +0.80% returned 3.9% for the third quarter. Here’s how the 10 sectors of the benchmark index performed (excluding the new real estate sector, since FactSet has only been tracking it since Sept. 19).
| Sector | Total return – third quarter | Total return – first half of 2016 | Total return – 2016 | Total return – 2015 |
| Information Technology | 12.9% | -0.3% | 12.5% | 5.9% |
| Financials | 4.6% | -3.0% | 1.4% | -1.5% |
| Industrials | 4.1% | 6.5% | 10.9% | -2.5% |
| Materials | 3.7% | 7.5% | 11.4% | -8.4% |
| Consumer Discretionary | 2.9% | 0.7% | 3.6% | 10.1% |
| Energy | 2.3% | 16.1% | 18.7% | -21.1% |
| Health Care | 0.9% | 0.4% | 1.4% | 6.9% |
| Consumer Staples | -2.6% | 10.5% | 7.6% | 6.6% |
| Telecommunications Services | -5.6% | 24.8% | 17.9% | 3.4% |
| Utilities | -5.9% | 23.4% | 16.1% | -4.8% |
| S&P 500 | 3.9% | 3.8% | 7.8% | 1.4% |
| Source: FactSet | ||||
Aside from the recovery for the energy sector, as oil prices have risen from their cycle lows in February, this year’s major themes have been investors’ flight to yieldand low volatility, owing to seemingly eternal low interest rates. But the utilities and telecommunications sectors, which feature many stocks with high dividend yields, declined in the third quarter.
Also see: How to buy low and sell really high in the stock market
We thought it would be interesting to highlight which stocks performed best during the third quarter, while also showing returns for the first half of the year, so you could see which gained momentum heading into the last three months of 2016.
Here are the 49 S&P 500 stocks with returns of at least 20% in the third quarter:
| Company | Ticker | Industry | Total return – third quarter | Total return – first half of 2016 | Total return – 2016 | Total return – 2015 |
| Seagate Technology PLC | STX,+2.01% | Computer Peripherals | 61% | -30% | 12% | -42% |
| NetApp Inc. | NTAP,+3.14% | Computer Peripherals | 47% | -6% | 35% | -35% |
| Chesapeake Energy Corp. | CHK,+2.45% | Oil and Gas Production | 46% | -5% | 50% | -77% |
| Nividia Corp. | NVDA,+1.66% | Semiconductors | 46% | 44% | 104% | 67% |
| Williams Cos. | WMB,+1.12% | Oil and Gas Pipelines | 43% | -10% | 30% | -39% |
| eBay Inc. | EBAY,+1.86% | Consumer Services | 41% | -15% | 16% | 16% |
| Nordstrom Inc. | JWN,+0.78% | Apparel/ Footwear Retail | 37% | -22% | 6% | -31% |
| Autodesk Inc. | ADSK,+1.03% | Software | 34% | -11% | 19% | 1% |
| State Street Corp. | STT,+1.52% | Investment Managers | 30% | -18% | 7% | -14% |
| American Airlines Group Inc. | AAL,+2.21% | Airlines | 30% | -33% | -15% | -20% |
| Biogen Inc. | BIIB,+2.37% | Biotechnology | 29% | -21% | 1% | -10% |
| Illumina Inc. | ILMN,+2.89% | Biotechnology | 29% | -27% | -6% | 4% |
| Endo International PLC | ENDP,-3.73% | Pharmaceuticals | 29% | -75% | -63% | -15% |
| Micron Technology Inc. | MU,+1.37% | Semiconductors | 29% | -3% | 23% | -60% |
| Qualcomm Inc. | QCOM,+1.56% | Telecommunications Equipment | 29% | 9% | 30% | -31% |
| Linear Technology Corp. | LLTC,+0.30% | Semiconductors | 28% | 11% | 42% | -4% |
| United Continental Holdings Inc. | UAL,+2.60% | Airlines | 28% | -28% | -12% | -14% |
| Principal Financial Group Inc. | PFG,+2.00% | Financial Conglomerates | 26% | -7% | 17% | -11% |
| Applied Materials Inc. | AMAT,+1.93% | Electronic Production Equipment | 26% | 30% | 61% | -24% |
| Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. | GT,+1.80% | Automotive Aftermarket | 26% | -21% | 1% | 15% |
| WestRock Co. | WRK,+2.47% | Containers/ Packaging | 26% | -3% | 20% | -23% |
| Best Buy Inc. | BBY,+2.06% | Electronics/ Appliance Stores | 26% | 4% | 29% | -19% |
| Urban Outfitters Inc. | URBN,+0.26% | Apparel/ Footwear Retail | 26% | 21% | 52% | -35% |
| Charles Schwab Corp. | SCHW,+2.87% | Investment Banks/ Brokers | 25% | -23% | -5% | 10% |
| HP Inc. | HPQ,+0.91% | Computer Processing Hardware | 25% | 8% | 35% | -33% |
| Western Digital Corp. | WDC,+0.34% | Computer Peripherals | 25% | -20% | 0% | -44% |
| Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. | HPE,-0.66% | Computer Processing Hardware | 25% | 21% | 53% | N/A |
| Citizens Financial Group Inc. | CFG,+2.74% | Regional Banks | 24% | -23% | -5% | 7% |
| Kinder Morgan Inc. Class P | KMI,+1.63% | Oil and Gas Production | 24% | 27% | 56% | -63% |
| Morgan Stanley | MS,+3.29% | Investment Banks/ Brokers | 24% | -17% | 2% | -17% |
| News Corp. Class A | NWSA,+0.65% | Publishing | 24% | -14% | 7% | -14% |
| Foot Locker Inc. | FL,+1.33% | Apparel/ Footwear Retail | 24% | -15% | 6% | 18% |
| E-Trade Financial Corp. | ETFC,+2.46% | Investment Banks/ Brokers | 24% | -21% | -4% | 22% |
| Zions Bancorporation | ZION,+1.64% | Regional Banks | 24% | -7% | 14% | -4% |
| Teradata Corp. | TDC,+2.96% | Information Technology Services | 24% | -5% | 17% | -40% |
| Invesco Ltd. | IVZ,+2.73% | Investment Managers | 24% | -22% | -5% | -13% |
| Microchip Technology Inc. | MCHP,+0.27% | Semiconductors | 23% | 11% | 35% | 6% |
| Pioneer Natural Resources Co. | PXD,+0.16% | Oil and Gas Production | 23% | 21% | 46% | -16% |
| News Corp. Class B | NWS,+0.64% | Publishing | 23% | -16% | 4% | -7% |
| Symantec Corp. | SYMC,+0.36% | Software | 23% | 23% | 52% | -16% |
| Navient Corp. | NAVI,+1.12% | Investment Banks/ Brokers | 22% | 7% | 32% | -45% |
| Lincoln National Corp. | LNC,+2.42% | Life/ Health Insurance | 22% | -22% | -6% | -12% |
| Devon Energy Corp. | DVN,+2.49% | Oil and Gas Production | 22% | 15% | 32% | -47% |
| Quanta Services Inc. | PWR,+0.68% | Engineering and Construction | 21% | 14% | 37% | -29% |
| Varian Medical Systems Inc. | VAR,+1.00% | Medical Specialties | 21% | 2% | 23% | -7% |
| Edwards Lifesciences Corp. | EW,+1.09% | Medical Specialties | 21% | 26% | 53% | 24% |
| Skyworks Solutions Inc. | SWKS,+3.93% | Semiconductors | 21% | -17% | -2% | 7% |
| Tiffany & Co. | TIF,+1.77% | Specialty Stores | 21% | -19% | -5% | -27% |
| BorgWarner Inc. | BWA,+2.57% | Auto Parts: OEM | 20% | -31% | -19% | -21% |
| Source: FactSet | ||||||
Now that’s what’s called volatility. Of the 49 stocks, 36 have produced year-to-date gains, but only 12 generated positive returns in 2015.
So day-traders no doubt derive plenty of pleasure — and pain — from this group, but long-term investors need to be careful, or have enough conviction to ride out alarming volatility. Or both.
Here are price-to-earnings ratios for the group, along with a summary of analysts’ opinions:
| Company | Ticker | Price/ Consensus 2017 EPS estimate | Share of analysts with ‘buy’ ratings | Share of analysts with neutral ratings | Share of analysts with ‘sell’ ratings | Implied 12-month upside potential base on consensus price targets |
| Seagate Technology PLC | STX,+2.01% | 12.8 | 19% | 69% | 12% | -13% |
| NetApp Inc. | NTAP,+3.14% | 13.4 | 14% | 67% | 19% | -8% |
| Chesapeake Energy Corp. | CHK,+2.45% | 7.2 | 16% | 53% | 31% | 0% |
| Nividia Corp. | NVDA,+1.66% | 36.1 | 45% | 42% | 13% | -6% |
| Williams Cos. | WMB,+1.12% | 32.2 | 53% | 35% | 12% | -2% |
| eBay Inc. | EBAY,+1.86% | 15.8 | 39% | 56% | 5% | -3% |
| Nordstrom Inc. | JWN,+0.78% | 17.3 | 30% | 53% | 17% | -6% |
| Autodesk Inc. | ADSK,+1.03% | N/A | 45% | 41% | 14% | -6% |
| State Street Corp. | STT,+1.52% | 12.5 | 21% | 63% | 16% | 1% |
| American Airlines Group Inc. | AAL,+2.21% | 7.7 | 53% | 34% | 13% | 12% |
| Biogen Inc. | BIIB,+2.37% | 15.1 | 62% | 38% | 0% | 10% |
| Illumina Inc. | ILMN,+2.89% | 44.5 | 32% | 64% | 4% | -14% |
| Endo International PLC | ENDP,-3.73% | 4.1 | 50% | 50% | 0% | 33% |
| Micron Technology Inc. | MU,+1.37% | 23.8 | 67% | 22% | 11% | 6% |
| Qualcomm Inc. | QCOM,+1.56% | 14.4 | 47% | 50% | 3% | -7% |
| Linear Technology Corp. | LLTC,+0.30% | 27.2 | 5% | 90% | 5% | 2% |
| United Continental Holdings Inc. | UAL,+2.60% | 7.9 | 75% | 25% | 0% | 12% |
| Principal Financial Group Inc. | PFG,+2.00% | 10.9 | 36% | 50% | 14% | -5% |
| Applied Materials Inc. | AMAT,+1.93% | 13.3 | 84% | 16% | 0% | 10% |
| Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. | GT,+1.80% | 7.6 | 90% | 0% | 10% | 13% |
| WestRock Co. | WRK,+2.47% | 16.7 | 44% | 50% | 6% | 5% |
| Best Buy Inc. | BBY,+2.06% | 11.8 | 20% | 72% | 8% | -1% |
| Urban Outfitters Inc. | URBN,+0.26% | 15.3 | 32% | 65% | 3% | 7% |
| Charles Schwab Corp. | SCHW,+2.87% | 21.4 | 65% | 35% | 0% | 3% |
| HP Inc. | HPQ,+0.91% | 9.7 | 39% | 61% | 0% | -4% |
| Western Digital Corp. | WDC,+0.34% | 13.0 | 64% | 30% | 6% | 7% |
| Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. | HPE,-0.66% | 11.1 | 48% | 48% | 4% | 3% |
| Citizens Financial Group Inc. | CFG,+2.74% | 12.0 | 73% | 27% | 0% | 5% |
| Kinder Morgan Inc. Class P | KMI,+1.63% | 30.1 | 55% | 45% | 0% | 3% |
| Morgan Stanley | MS,+3.29% | 10.8 | 50% | 43% | 7% | 4% |
| News Corp. Class A | NWSA,+0.65% | 30.3 | 55% | 45% | 0% | 12% |
| Foot Locker Inc. | FL,+1.33% | 12.9 | 70% | 30% | 0% | 12% |
| E-Trade Financial Corp. | ETFC,+2.46% | 16.8 | 75% | 25% | 0% | 4% |
| Zions Bancorporation | ZION,+1.64% | 13.9 | 59% | 34% | 7% | 1% |
| Teradata Corp. | TDC,+2.96% | 12.7 | 8% | 71% | 21% | -8% |
| Invesco Ltd. | IVZ,+2.73% | 11.8 | 71% | 29% | 0% | 10% |
| Microchip Technology Inc. | MCHP,+0.27% | 16.3 | 56% | 39% | 5% | 2% |
| Pioneer Natural Resources Co. | PXD,+0.16% | 243.6 | 89% | 4% | 7% | 10% |
| News Corp. Class B | NWS,+0.64% | 30.8 | 67% | 33% | 0% | 9% |
| Symantec Corp. | SYMC,+0.36% | 14.6 | 40% | 53% | 7% | -1% |
| Navient Corp. | NAVI,+1.12% | 7.3 | 62% | 38% | 0% | 17% |
| Lincoln National Corp. | LNC,+2.42% | 6.9 | 47% | 53% | 0% | 8% |
| Devon Energy Corp. | DVN,+2.49% | 34.0 | 71% | 26% | 3% | 6% |
| Quanta Services Inc. | PWR,+0.68% | 14.2 | 80% | 20% | 0% | 0% |
| Varian Medical Systems Inc. | VAR,+1.00% | 20.0 | 27% | 73% | 0% | -5% |
| Edwards Lifesciences Corp. | EW,+1.09% | 35.5 | 68% | 28% | 4% | 2% |
| Skyworks Solutions Inc. | SWKS,+3.93% | 12.4 | 71% | 21% | 8% | 8% |
| Tiffany & Co. | TIF,+1.77% | 18.4 | 53% | 43% | 4% | 8% |
| BorgWarner Inc. | BWA,+2.57% | 9.9 | 57% | 33% | 10% | 14% |
| Source: FactSet | ||||||
In comparison, the S&P 500 trades for 16.3 times weighted consensus 2017 earnings estimates.
[Source:- marketwatch]