With the persistence of European debt woes and recent increases in market volatility, could we be ready for another correction? One thing to consider is the S&P 500's performance relative to other similar indexes. Michael Jarman of H20 Markets told CNBC that the UK's FTSE 100 index generally shadows the S&P 500, but has only returned 3.5% during the first quarter, while the S&P 500 returned around 12%.
Marc Faber, editor and publisher of the Gloom, Boom and Doom Report, believes we will face another correction, or perhaps a bear market. In contrast, another strategist claimed that the bull market should continue, while George Gober of Matterly Asset Management said that the S&P 500's outperformance is likely due to Apple's
However, the Labor Department announced that only 120,000 jobs were created in March, which marks the smallest increase since October, and came in lower than the expected 200,000 jobs. Unemployment fell to a three-year low in March to 8.2%.
Business section: Investing ideas
For a look at stocks that may hold strong in another correction, we're listing companies that have gained over 20% in the past quarter with encouraging trends from DuPont analysis. Do you think these stocks will continue moving higher?
List sorted by market cap. (Click here to access free, interactive tools to analyze these ideas.)
1. Apple: Designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication and media devices, and portable digital music players, and sells related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications worldwide. It has a market cap of $583.85 billion. The stock has gained 47.95% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 28.2% vs. 22.45% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.334 vs. 0.308 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.54 vs. 1.587 y/y.
2. Las Vegas Sands
3. CA Technologies
4. Terra Nitrogen Company
5. Thomas & Betts: Designs, manufactures, and markets electrical components for industrial, construction, and utility markets in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It has a market cap of $3.75 billion. The stock has gained 24.09% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 9.42% vs. 7.51% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.214 vs. 0.202 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.762 vs. 1.795 y/y.
6. Solutia
7. Ascena Retail Group: Operates as a specialty retailer of apparel for women and tween girls in the United States and Puerto Rico. It has a market cap of $3.27 billion. The stock has gained 26.26% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 7.39% vs. 5.65% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.449 vs. 0.437 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.528 vs. 1.573 y/y.
8. ZOLL Medical: Develops, manufactures, and markets resuscitation devices and related software solutions worldwide. It has a market cap of $2.07 billion. The stock has gained 37.99% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 4.96% vs. 3.45% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.281 vs. 0.257 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.288 vs. 1.374 y/y.
9. Darling International: Provides rendering, recycling, and recovery solutions to the food industry worldwide. It has a market cap of $1.94 billion. The stock has gained 20.57% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 6.85% vs. 4.41% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.304 vs. 0.164 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.54 vs. 2.977 y/y.
10. SS&C Technologies Holdings: Provides software products and software-enabled services to the financial service providers worldwide. It has a market cap of $1.74B. The stock has gained 24.19% over the past quarter. MRQ net profit margin at 13.86% vs. 10.66% y/y. MRQ sales/assets at 0.079 vs. 0.067 y/y. MRQ assets/equity at 1.232 vs. 1.488 y/y.
Interactive Chart: Press Play to compare changes in analyst ratings over the last two years for the stocks mentioned above. Analyst ratings sourced from Zacks Investment Research.