Are you looking for some discounted stocks to buy? Although the markets have been strong with the S&P 500 climbing more than 11% this year, there are some noteworthy stocks that have been struggling and that could be great buys right now.
Shares of Quidel (QDEL) and fuboTV (FUBO -0.72%) are down more than 25% year to date. And while they have lost some steam of late, these businesses still have attractive long-term growth opportunities that investors shouldn't overlook. Here's a closer look at why it may a good idea to buy these stocks on the dip.
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1. Quidel
Quidel is coming off of a remarkable year in which COVID-19 testing bolstered its results. In 2020, sales of $1.7 billion were more than three times the $535 million the company reported in the previous year. Naturally, as investors see a possible end to the pandemic now that there are multiple vaccines available, they aren't expecting the results to be nearly as strong for the coming year.
Last week, things went from bad to worse when the company announced its first-quarter sales for the period ended March 31 would be between $374 million and $376 million. Although that would be a 114% increase from the prior-year period, it is less than half the $809.2 million the testing company reported in the fourth quarter. Shares of Quidel are now down more than 35% in 2021.
However, investors shouldn't count out a recovery. There will still be a strong need for COVID-19 testing as the economy gets back to normal. In April, Quidel announced the San Diego Padres baseball team would be using its quick tests to ensure a safe reopening. The company also recently reached a distribution deal with McKesson to distribute Quidel's at-home COVID-19 test, which will open up more opportunities in the near future. These are the types of deals I would expect to see from Quidel this year as it pivots in strategy and why I wouldn't be quick to assume that its sales will crash in 2021.
Although the company's numbers may not be terribly strong out of the gate in the first quarter, it will take some time for the business to focus on different growth opportunities. Testing for COVID-19 isn't going away, especially as variants of the disease pose new risks. Investors should take the opportunity to buy the healthcare stock, which is trading at 52-week lows.
2. fuboTV
fuboTV has been an increasingly popular name in the streaming business. With a market cap of about $3 billion, it is nowhere near the size of streaming giant Netflix, which is worth more than $220 billion. But the potential is there as fuboTV has been successful in landing deals and growing its top line. In April, the company acquired exclusive streaming rights for South American qualifying matches for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Although fuboTV offers more than just sports, soccer has been an area management has been specifically focusing on, even as other streaming companies have been less keen.
And its strategy has been working incredibly well: fuboTV's subscriber count in 2020 totaled 547,880, a 73% uptick from the previous year. Its sales of $268.8 million were also 83% higher. The one glaring negative right now is that profits remain elusive as the company incurred a loss of $570.5 million last year. However, the business is still in its early growth stages and it may take some time before profits arrive.
Investors are generally more willing to look past a weak bottom line if the company is growing at an incredible rate, which fuboTV is. And that's why, although the stock is down more than 25% this year, I wouldn't expect things to stay that way. The stock hasn't been this cheap since November. For investors, now could be a great time to load up and buy shares of fuboTV before it recovers.
