Target store shopping carts in Miami.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
It’s been a volatile month for stocks as investors have navigated a complex macroeconomic minefield — from rising interest rates to ongoing geopolitical conflict in Ukraine.
The S&P 500 (ticker: SPX) has fallen 7.8% this year, and has declined more than 3% in April alone. Earnings season, which is slated to start in earnest next week probably won’t give the market the boost investors are desperately looking for. While corporate sales are forecast to grow rapidly in the first quarter, profit is expected to grow about half as fast, compressing margins.
Some stocks have fared better than others in April. Here are the best — and worst — performers of the S&P 500 so far this month.
Top Performers
1: Twitter
Twitter’s April tear began when billionaire Elon Musk disclosed a 9.2% stake in the social media company, sending the stock surging nearly 25%. Prices have since normalized in the aftermath of the disclosure. In the span of two weeks, Twitter (ticker: TWTR
) named Musk to the company’s board with the condition he could not own more than 14.9% of the stock. He rejected the board seat and instead offered to buy out Twitter for roughly $43 billion.
Twitter stock has gained 16.5% in April and 4.3% year to date, outperforming the S&P 500.
2: Lamb Weston
Shares of Lamb Weston ( LW
), the frozen-potato product manufacturer, have gained 14.7% in April. The stock has risen 8.4% this year.
3: Mosaic
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could have serious repercussions on the world’s food and agricultural supply chain, given that Russia is one of the world’s largest producers of key chemicals needed to make fertilizer. Investors concerned about the impact have turned to Mosaic ( MOS
), which manufactures concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients.
Mosaic has risen 14.4% in April, and 93% this year.
4: Ross Stores
Discount retailer Ross Stores ( ROST
) has spiked 14% so far in April. As inflation reaches its highest point in decades, consumers are increasingly turning to off-price retailers, boosting Ross shares.
The stock has dropped nearly 10% this year, however.
5: Target
Target ( TGT
) stock rose 11.8% this month, helping the shares erase losses from the beginning of the year. The retail giant has become a cult favorite among consumers, and took advantage of a pandemic-era boost to gobble up market share. Earlier in April, Gordon Haskett upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold, citing optimism over improving traffic and payoffs in its investment in grocery segments.
Worst Performers
1: Nvidia
Nvidia ( NVDA
) has struggled in April, losing 22% throughout the month following a series of analyst downgrades and price cuts. Some analysts have warned that demand for semiconductors may be slowing down across several large markets, including China and Russia.
The stock is down 28% year to date.
2: MarketAxess
MarketAxess (MKTX), which operates an electronic bond-trading platform, is down 22% this month. The Federal Reserve has begun lifting short-term interest rates and it has plans to begin tapering its bond-buying program in a bid to tamp down inflation. As a result, bond yields have been trending higher while prices have been falling.
The stock has fallen 35% this year.
3: Monolithic Power Systems
Shares of Monolithic Power Systems ( MPWR
) have dropped 15.7% this month, and 17% year to date. The company produces semiconductors, and the stock may have been impacted by analysts’ calls for slowing chip demand.
4: Generac
Generator maker Generac ( GNRC
) has lost 15.5% this month so far, and is down nearly 30% this year. The pullback could be an opportunity, according to some analysts. Goldman Sachs added Generac to its “Americas Buy List” in early April, citing a broad product portfolio and a rising distributor count.
5: Match Group
Online dating company Match Group (MTCH) has been pummeled this year, losing a little more than 30%. In April alone, the stock dropped 15.3%
Write to Sabrina Escobar at [email protected]
