As the world prepares to welcome 2017, investors are asking, "What now?"
The stock market is at record highs. The Dow is nearly at an eye-popping level of 20,000. This bull market is the second longest ever and just about anyone with money in the market has been raking it in. But will the joy ride continue?
Wall Street gurus predict yes, the rally will keep going, albeit with a lot less gusto. (Think 5% or less returns next year compared to 10%+ this year). Many investors are looking closely at what sectors and individual stocks to buy as they worry the overall bull market is getting weary.
Below are five stocks to consider buying in 2017.
The internet abounds with stock recommendations, but here's why these deserve extra attention: They come from the top stock pickers on Wall Street. That's according to TipRanks, a startup founded in 2012 that analyzes the accuracy of what all the Wall Street analysts and bloggers recommend.
In other words, these five analysts have made hundreds of stock ratings over the years, and have had the most profitable track records if you follow what they recommend.
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1. Tech company: Broadcom Limited (AVGO)
Recommended by: Ross Seymore from Deutsche Bank (TipRanks gives him a 5-star rating)
Stock price right now: $180 a share
Seymore says Broadcom, a key player in wireless technology, will go to $225 a share because the company continues to beat expectations and trim costs.
2. Health care: Envision Health care (EVHC)
Recommended by: Michael Wiederhorn from Oppenheimer (TipRanks gives him a 5-star rating).
Stock price right now: $65
Wiederhorn says it will go to $87 a share because the company is coming off a merger with AmSurg in a very strong position to be a dominant player in hospital care, especially services that don't require an overnight stay.
3. Financial: State Street Corp. (STT)
Recommended by: Ken Usdin from Jefferies (TipRanks gives him a 5-star rating).
Stock price right now: $79
Usdin says the stock will go to $89 because the company continues to trim costs and win more customer assets, which translates directly into more fees.
4. Services: Delta Airlines (DAL)
Recommended by: Helane Becker from Cowen & Co. (TripRanks gives her a 5-star rating).
Stock price right now: $50
Becker says the stock will go to $56 because both leisure and business travel continues to pick up, especially as post-election optimism has soared.
5. Industrial: Dycom Industries (DY)
Recommended by: Alex Rygiel from FBR Capital (TripRanks gives him a 5-star rating).
Stock price right now: $80
Rygiel says the stock price will go to $115 because he thinks the company, which supplies many of the workers who actually build telecom services, will be able to continue its stellar year over year climb in revenues by gaining new clients. That said, the company did have a setback this fall when Google Fiber announced cuts. Google is a big Dycom customer.
