Best Biotech Stocks To Invest In 2018

tags:USAP,FNV,IBM,

We made a big bet on biotech exactly one year ago.

At the time, it was one of the most unloved sectors on the market. No, the biotech bull never showed its face in 2016.

But in early 2017, we witnessed the beginnings of a powerful rally and hopped onboard for a long-term trade. A fast start out of the gate in 2017 was just what the ailing sector needed to spark a massive bull run, we reasoned.

Fast forward 12 months and the SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (NYSE:XBI) is higher by almost 50%. But this rally ain��t over yet. The beginning of 2018 trading is already flashing a new biotech breakout �� a move that could cement these stocks as some of the year��s most explosive market leaders.

The major averages have posted impressive gains to begin 2018 trading. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has already posted year-to-date gains of more than 2.3%.

But that��s nothing compared to XBI. The small-cap biotech ETF has stormed higher this week with a two-day gain of more than 4%.

Best Biotech Stocks To Invest In 2018: Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc.(USAP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Shares of Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:USAP) traded down 0% on Friday . The company traded as low as $24.22 and last traded at $24.53. 505,097 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 1,278% from the average session volume of 36,661 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.53.

Best Biotech Stocks To Invest In 2018: Franco-Nevada Corporation(FNV)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  ARP Americas LP cut its position in Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) by 35.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 7,441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,167 shares during the period. ARP Americas LP’s holdings in Franco-Nevada were worth $507,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) has done a good job recently of expanding its reach. After focusing almost exclusively on streaming agreements with mining partners in gold and other precious and base metals, the company decided recently to boost its exposure to oil and gas considerably. That's proven to be an important move, as weaker gold production has been offset by better performance in its growing energy portfolio.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) went public in the U.S. market more than a decade ago, and over that time, the company has established itself as a major player in an important niche in the natural resources industry. Franco-Nevada neither mines gold nor drills for oil, but by helping to finance projects that mining companies and oil drillers want to pursue, it ensures it can get a cut of the profits. That's been a winning business model lately, and throughout its history as a publicly traded company, Franco-Nevada has stood out for one thing that it's done consistently well: paying and raising its dividend regularly over time.

• [By Reuben Gregg Brewer]

  Although gold streaming is something of a niche in the precious metals market, the largest competitors have been in the business since the 1980s,�while new entrants are showing up as well (including hedge funds, private equity, and pension funds). Most investors, however, should probably stick with the largest, easiest to trade, and longest-tenured companies for now. Here are the top five.

  Company Market Cap Dividend Yield Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) $13 billion 1.3% Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) $9 billion 1.7% Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) $6 billion 1.2% Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd. $1.6 billion 1.6% Sandstorm Gold Ltd. $800 million N/A Franco-Nevada

  The largest streaming company by market cap is Franco-Nevada. As noted above, it has investments in nearly 300 mines, 50 of which are producing. However, it has taken diversification further than its peers by investing in around 80 oil and natural gas assets (57 producing), following the same basic business model. It's not as pure a play on metals, but if you are looking for diversification, that non-precious-metals exposure is an interesting addition to the mix. That said, gold provides roughly 70% of its revenue, with silver at 15%, and oil and gas at just 7% (the rest is, effectively, "other"), meaning that gold is still the big driver of performance here. The company has increased its dividend annually for 10 consecutive years.

• [By David Zeiler]

  "If you look back to the 70s, 80s and 90s, in every of those decades the industry found at least one 50+ million ounce gold deposit, at least ten 30+ million ounce deposits and countless five to 10 million ounce deposits. But if you look at the last 15 years, we found no 50 million ounce deposit, no 30 million ounce deposit and only very few 15 million ounce deposits," Pierre Lassonde, chair of gold royalty and income stream company Franco-Nevada Corp. (NYSE: FNV), told German financial newspaper Finanz und Wirtschaft last October.

• [By Reuben Gregg Brewer]

  Gold streaming company Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE:FNV) offers investors a unique way to gain exposure to precious metals, but when you compare it to peers Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) and Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM)�it looks relatively expensive. That said, if you are looking to gold for diversification you might still find that Franco-Nevada Corporation stock is a buy.

Best Biotech Stocks To Invest In 2018: International Business Machines Corporation(IBM)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ]

  Earnings will once again dominate the early portion of the trading day, with first quarter reports from Dow components in Action Alerts PLUS holding UnitedHealth (UNH) , Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)  , Goldman Sachs (GS) and IBM Corp. (IBM) . 

• [By Jamal Carnette, CFA]

  By recent metrics, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) had a decent first quarter. The company beat analyst expectations of $2.41 adjusted EPS and revenue of $18.82 billion, according to data from Thomson Reuters, by reporting $2.45 and $19.1 billion, respectively.

• [By Money Morning Staff Reports]

  Through Tom's various strategies, followers had the chance to pocket gains of 195.36% in 16 days on Priceline Group Inc. (Nasdaq: PCLN), 193.39% in 16 days on SPDR Gold Trust (ETF) (NYSE Arca: GLD), 100% in eight days on International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), and even 248.42% in 17 days on SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE Arca: DIA).

• [By ]

  In Pirates of Silicon Valley, an old made-for-TV movie about the PC industry's early days, the Bill Gates character quips (in reference to IBM's (IBM) willingness to let Microsoft (MSFT)  supply the OS for its PCs) that success is a menace, since it fools smart people into thinking that they can't lose. Bezos's remarks, as well as those made at times by other Amazon execs, suggest Amazon puts a lot of effort into making sure the company doesn't lose its edge on account of its success.