There are several key stocks in the U.S. investors need to be mindful of when navigating the current market environment, according to Bank of America. “The combination of an improving global earnings cycle, easier monetary policy in the US as inflation returns to the target level, and China’s recent multifaceted stimulus appears supportive of equity markets and cyclicals,” strategist Nigel Tupper said in a Monday note to clients. “Seasonality also provides a positive backdrop,” he added, noting that global equities have rallied in the last ten weeks of the calendar year in 86% of years going back to1988. Despite a rocky start to October, the S & P 500 is still up 19% for the year. The benchmark also had its strongest gain over the first nine months of a year going back to 1997 , according to Bespoke Investment Group data. To capture the momentum from this rally, Bank of America screened for the most important stocks in each region of the world — including the U.S. — that have the potential to have the largest impact on portfolio performance, positive or negative. The firm also identified stocks that are “in vogue” — meaning they have characteristics that are suitable for the current global economic upturn. Many of these names are also considered “steady compounders,” meaning the stocks have proven sustained long-term earnings growth. Bank of America found these stocks to be among the most important in the U.S.: Chipmaker Nvidia and oil and gas giant Exxon Mobil ranked fairly high on the firm’s steady compounders list within the screen. Nvidia has shares skyrocketed more than 146% year to date. BofA analyst Vivek Arya’s $165 price target implies about 34.3% upside for the AI darling. He views Nvidia’s longer-term growth opportunities being tied to gaming and data center demand. Exxon shares have outperformed this week, gaining about 5.8%, as oil prices pop amid fears about prolonged uncertainty in the Middle East with Israel’s ground operation beginning in Lebanon . The stock was on pace to cross a new all-time high on Thursday. This year, its shares are up 22.4%. Most analysts are bullish on both stocks. Of the 64 covering Nvidia, 58 rate Nvidia a buy or strong buy. Exxon has buy or strong buy ratings from 16 of 28 analysts. Meta , which made the screener’s cut alongside other mega cap stocks Apple and Tesla , is a favorite of Bank of America’s for its artificial intelligence possibilities. Meta’s the firm’s top AI-related pick in the consumer internet space. The firm lifted its price target to $630 from $563 in a Sept. 26 note, which suggests shares could gain 8.1% from Thursday’s close. Meta’s shares are up nearly 64% year to date. “While Metaverse spend still seems hard to justify, with glasses long-term investors may have some renewed optimism on Meta’s opportunity to be at the forefront of the next generation of personal computing devices,” Bank of America analyst Justin Post wrote to clients. “More importantly, the company appears to be successfully innovating around new AI capabilities.” Other stocks considered the most important names in the U.S. include rideshare company Uber and pharma name Eli Lilly .
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