Sure, the best stock picks may be ones that have been on a consistent rise for a while. But nothing goes up for ever! Especially in today’s stock market volatility. So why not instead try to find beaten down stock picks that we think still have a bright future? Here are three stock picks that I think will be recovering over the years, or at the bare minimum can stay consistent and provide excellent dividends.
However, all these stocks, beyond the general market volatility, have a large risk coming up: the Fed potentially raising rates again on May 3rd. So just keep this in mind when looking at not just these stocks, but any investments you plan to be making short term.
AT&T ($T)
The first of the stock picks is one that many people have always loved for dividends. However, I will be honest, I usually overlooked it due to a fairly consistent downtrend in the stock price since 2016-2017. But now? With a dividend yield of 6.28% as of market close on Friday, April 28th, I figured AT&T was worth another look! A 10% drop over the last couple weeks has led to this inflated yield. So I decided to take a look at their recent earnings, reported on April 20th. The biggest concern appears to be with free cash flow. The full year goal is $16 billion, yet through the first quarter, they are only at $1 billion. While payments are very seasonal for the industry, they ended up with $14 billion in free cash flow at the end of 2022 and generated $2.8 billion in the first quarter of 2022. So those numbers aren’t exactly appealing… However, the most important number, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization), was up $0.4 billion from 2022, which is a good sign. Overall, the management team at AT&T has always been a bit of a mess, which is a strong reason for the overall decline in their stock price for the past several years.
While the free cash flow and management team don’t inspire the greatest confidence, the high dividend and recent price pullback helped AT&T make it one of my stock picks for April. I may wait until after the Fed meeting to purchase, but will be sure to update my investments page if I decide to do so.
Cisco ($CSCO)
The second on my stock picks list is Cisco. Now, many of us office workers will recognize them for their desk phones.But they do so much more. Whether it be computer software, security, or the cloud, Cisco is involved in a bit of everything. This provides them with a variety of growth prospects, making them more attractive than AT&T in this way. But it’s not just a growth stock! With a dividend yield of 3.3%, it offers great dividend value as well! And with a recent nearly 10% pullback over the past month, this is a great opportunity to buy. But again, the May 3rd date. If there is a several percent pullback in anticipation, I may buy the stock prior to the Fed meeting. But I may wait instead. I hope to add this to my dividend portfolio for the long term, as I think Cisco offers a great combination of growth and value for my personal risk tolerance.
Pinterest ($PINS)
Onto the last of the April stock picks. This one is more for those with a higher risk tolerance, or potentially looking at a swing trade. Pinterest is a commonly used social media app, used for posting pictures, ideas, or other information (I actually use Pinterest myself for this site). However, the main reason I included it for April stock picks was due to the over 15% pullback over the past week. Even after beating earnings on April 27th! However, this was due to Pinterest saying that guidance was going to remain consistent, with little change or growth from 2022. Sure, not great, but worth a 15%+ drop? I don’t think so. With this in mind, I plan to buy it for a swing trade at the start of the week. However, be warned: this may be a stock that gets crushed hard if the Fed has bad news on Wednesday. So be careful, and manage your risk.
Again, all these ideas are my own personal opinions, and all investments carry risk, especially in individual stocks! So make sure to do your own due diligence, manage risk, and if you have questions, to speak to a certified financial advisor!