The prospect of a so-called soft landing has made stocks more appealing in recent months.On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve added another 25 basis points to bring the fed funds rate to a range of 5.25% - 5.5%, the latter being the highest since 2001.
Whether the central bank will hike again in September is anyone's guess. Either way, we may be nearing the end of this series of rate hikes as inflation continues to ease without signs of a hard-hit economy. These developments have eased fears of a US recession. A survey published July 15 by The Wall Street Journal showed that academic economists downgraded their expectation of a downturn in the next 12 months to a 54% median probability from 61%. Economists at investment banks like Goldman Sachs are also very optimistic. The firmMeanwhile, stocks have leapt back into a bull market on the prospect that a recession is less likely.
One way to join the rally is to focus on company-specific fundamentals. And if you're not about scouring through earnings releases and company balance sheets, you can take a cue from Wall Street's top analysts. Below is a list of 20 stocks compiled by TipRanks, a research firm. These stocks have"strong buy" ratings and upsides above 24%. Each slide includes the average 12-month price target released by top analysts in the last three months.