Quarterly results are out, could these companies recover as quickly as the economy reopens?
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4 Trending Industrial Stocks To Consider Adding To Your Watchlist This Week
With the economy reopening, investors could be searching for the top industrial stocks to buy in the stock market today. Last year, the sector had a huge setback when the COVID-19 pandemic brought industrial operations to a halt. Now, thanks to aggressive vaccination campaigns nationwide, industrial activities would be on the recovery. If you couple that with President Biden’s recent $2 trillion infrastructure plan, the industrial sector may just have enough to bounce back. As such, it may be an appropriate time to be looking at industrial stocks now. Especially since some of them are now trading at more reasonable prices.
If anything, industrial stocks could be one of the better bets in the stock market for more conservative investors. This could be the case as investor fears over inflation have led to sell-offs in high growth stocks before. Evidently, industrial giants such as Trimble Inc. (NASDAQ: TRMB) and Honeywell (NYSE: HON) continue to flourish as the economy recovers. Overall, industrial stocks could be looking at significant tailwinds ahead. Given all of this, you might be looking to add some industrial stocks to your portfolio as well. If you are, here are four of the top industrial stocks to buy in the stock market now.
Industrial Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] Right Now
- Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT)
- Boeing Company (NYSE: BA)
- General Electric Company (NYSE: GE)
- Raytheon Technologies Corporation (NYSE: RTX)
Caterpillar Inc.
First, on the list, we have world-leading manufacturer of construction, mining, and energy transportation equipment, Caterpillar Inc. With the economy on its way to recovery, CAT stock has been performing rather well. CAT shares hit a record high this year at $237.78 and are looking at gains of over 90% in the past year. With such momentum, could investors be eyeing CAT stock now?
The company recently reported an unexpected first-quarter result. Revenue grew 12% to $11.9 billion. Adjusted profit per share surged an impressive 74% to $2.87. According to Caterpillar, the surprising sales increase is thanks to higher end-user demand driving sales volumes this quarter. Moreover, the company also cited dealers increasing inventories as another key growth driver on this front.
The company also reported a strong balance sheet with an $11.3 billion enterprise cash balance, a 21% increase from Q4 2020. Caterpillar seems to be on a good pace with its recovery as sales were up across its three primary segments. Namely, its core construction division raked in total sales of $5.459 billion for the quarter, an increase of $1.15 billion quarter-over-quarter. CEO Jim Umpleby said, “We’re encouraged by improving conditions in our end markets and are proactively managing supply chain risks.” Should Caterpillar continue to perform this year, would you bet on CAT stock today?
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Boeing Company
Boeing, a company well-known for its top-of-the-line aircraft, is a leader in the aviation space that needs no introduction. A huge chunk of the company’s revenue comes from its commercial aircraft segment. With the pandemic hitting hard on the aviation industry, Boeing was inevitably impacted. This year, however, BA stock could be a viable reopening play for investors anticipating higher air-travel demand post-pandemic.
Just last month the company reported its first-quarter earnings. For starters, Boeing reported a total revenue of $15.2 billion. This was driven by higher deliveries of its 737-series aircraft throughout the quarter. Boeing delivered 77 commercial airplanes, a 54% year-over-year rise. The likes of which consisted of 58 units of its 737 MAX aircraft. Additionally, Boeing’s 787 aircraft resumed deliveries in late March after recent clearance from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). On top of all that, the company is also looking at backlog orders of over 4,000 airplanes at the moment. According to Boeing, these add up to a value of $238 billion and will be fulfilled in the coming months.
The defense segment is seeing some tailwinds as it reported a 19% revenue increase to $7.2 billion. Backlog at Defense, Space & Security was $61 billion, of which 31% represents orders from customers outside the U.S. All in all, it seems like Boeing is kicking into high gear now. Would you consider adding BA stock to your watchlist?
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General Electric Company
General Electric (GE) is an industrial conglomerate that has a stake in multiple industries. Some of its main sectors include healthcare, energy, aviation, and industrial manufacturing. For the most part, few can boast a portfolio as diverse as GE’s. This could make GE stock a more attractive bet for investors looking to bank on industrial players now. In fact, the company’s shares are currently up by over 90% in the past year. Could GE stocks be worth investing in now?
Well, we could take a look at the company’s recent quarter fiscal to get a clearer idea on this. Earlier this week, GE reported solid figures in its 2021 first-quarter fiscal. In detail, the company posted a total revenue of $17.1 billion for the quarter. On top of that, GE also saw its industrial free cash flow increase by $1.7 billion year-over-year.
On the operational front, the company has also been hard at work streamlining its portfolio. This would aid GE in better managing debts and focusing on its core sectors. Given the challenging operating environments across the company’s core businesses, GE remains resilient. Nevertheless, as broader economic recovery takes place, would you consider GE stock a buy right now?
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Raytheon Technologies Corporation
Raytheon Technologies is an aerospace and defense company that provides systems and services for commercial, military, and government clients worldwide. Particularly, its core end markets include the avionics and cybersecurity industries. Given Raytheon’s current position in the defense industry, its services would be in demand right now. This would be the case given the recent surge in cyber threats in the private and public sectors. Similarly, RTX stock appears to be picking up momentum with year-to-date gains of over 20%. Could this mean that RTX stock has more room to run moving forward?
Well, for one thing, the company recently reported impressive figures in its first-quarter fiscal, beating Wall Street’s estimates. Firstly, Raytheon saw more than $753 million in net income, reversing its loss of $83 million a year ago. Additionally, sales grew over 30% year-over-year to $15.25 billion. The company also appears positive about its performance moving forward. We can see this as it raised bottom-line estimates across the board for its fiscal year 2021 outlook.
CEO Greg Hayes cites strong defense backlogs and continued recovery in commercial air travel as key factors for this update. Now, Raytheon seems to be firing on all cylinders while RTX stock trades below pre-pandemic levels. All things considered, could now be the time to invest in RTX stock?