Lukewarm inflation data this past week has investors more optimistic that the Federal Reserve can engineer a potential soft landing — continued economic growth and weaker inflation. Softer-than expected headline and wholesale October inflation reading helped lift stocks last week, adding to November gains for all three major indexes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.9% last week, while the S & P 500 and Nasdaq Composite tacked on 2.2% and 2.4%, respectively. Stocks have trended higher since late October on growing belief that the Fed can soon end its monetary tightening campaign and move on lowering benchmark interest rates in 2024. Many of the stocks that have stood on Wall Street in November, however, are those that sell nonessential goods and services to consumers. Take the Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Cyclicals Momentum ETF (PEZ) , which has climbed almost 16% in November, double the overall market gain. PEZ mountain 2023-11-01 The Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Cyclicals Momentum ETF (PEZ). The ETF tracks cyclical stocks which are tied to economic conditions and business cycles. Morningstar says its largest holding is clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch , up 21% in November. Language teaching app Duolingo is the fund’s second-largest holding and higher by 45% this month. DraftKings rounds out the top three positions, and has soared 38% just since Halloween. Against this backdrop, CNBC screened FactSet data for stocks that meet the following criteria: Stocks in the Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Cyclicals Momentum ETF Average analyst forecasts imply at least 10% upside At least 55% of analysts polled rate the stock a buy Residential and commercial building material supplier Installed Building Products made the cut, and shares have added 28% this month alone. Roughly 55% of analysts polled by FactSet have a buy rating on Installed Building Products stock, while average price targets implied about 15% upside. IBP YTD mountain Installed Building Products stock. Goldman Sachs analyst Susan Maklari upgraded IBP to buy from neutral on Nov. 16, saying it will “leverage its compelling value proposition to builders” as single-family housing starts grow in 2024. Clothing company Guess has risen 11% this month, topping the 8% gain in the S & P 500. Some 60% of analysts polled by FactSet rate Guess shares a buy. Price targets from analysts, meanwhile, equated to about 19% upside for the stock as of Thursday. GES YTD mountain Guess? stock. Guess is set to report quarterly results on Tuesday, with analysts polled by FactSet forecasting an adjusted 61 cents per share on $655.5 million in revenue. July quarter earnings reported in August blew past analyst estimates. Elsewhere, cruise line Royal Caribbean Cruises has soared 24% in November. About 62% of analysts polled by FactSet rate Royal Caribbean a buy, with price targets late last week that implied about 14% upside. RCL YTD mountain Royal Caribbean stock. The company will host a Taylor Swift-themed cruise in October, 2024 aboard the Royal Caribbean Allure, sailing from the Port of Miami. Prices start at $1,573, organized by Marvelous Mouse Travels.
