The Nasdaq 100 is about to rebalance, and traders say investors may want to keep an eye on these 3 stocks in the index amid the change-up.
The Nasdaq 100 will be changing its stripes on Friday, replacing six of its current holdings for new stocks.
This annual rebalancing will see BioMarin Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: BMRN), Citrix Systems (NASDAQ: CTXS), Expedia Group (NASDAQ: EXPE), Liberty Global (NASDAQ: LBTYA), Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ: TTWO), and Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ: ULTA) leave the index.
In their place will be American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP), Atlassian (NASDAQ: TEAM), Marvell Technologies (NASDAQ: MRVL), Match Group (NASDAQ: MTCH), Okta (NASDAQ: OKTA), and Peloton (NASDAQ: PTON), six names that have been “rising in the ranks” amid the stay-at-home trend as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc across the U.S.
That’s according to Sean Wasserman, Nasdaq’s global head of index and advisor solutions, who added, “We have six really great, exciting new companies coming into the index, companies like Peloton, Atlassian, Okta, that really benefited from the current remote work-from-home environment.”
But as these new names are added to the index, one trader says there are two other stocks in the Nasdaq 100 to keep an eye on amid the rebalancing.
Mark Tepper, president of Strategic Wealth Partners, said this week that ahead of the rebalancing, he is adding to his position in both Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX).
While both of these big names have risen substantially in 2020—with Amazon up 75% year-to-date, and Netflix shares up 64% in the same timeframe—both stocks have been stuck in a sideways trading range for months, which Tepper argues gives investors a great opportunity to scoop up shares.
“Both of these stocks have been duds since the summertime,” Tepper said. “They traded sideways, they’ve been consolidating. … And in my opinion, that gives us a good buying opportunity.”
For Amazon, Tepper says the e-commerce giant’s shares are a buy when the company is in the midst of a spending spree.
“Amazon tends to go through these heavy investment cycles,” Tepper continued. “Whenever that happens investors get spooked and the multiple comes down, and then 12 to 18 months later, the investment stops, the profit spigot turns on and everyone gets blown away by the number. You buy it when they’re investing heavily and when the stock is treading water.”
And treading water it has. Since the stock hit a high on September 2, Amazon’s stock has formed a falling wedge pattern, which begins wide at the top and contracts as prices move lower. A falling wedge is a bullish signal.
Once Amazon shares break out of this pattern, Tepper argues it would be “reasonable” to see the stock hit $4,000 by the end of 2021 – indicting nearly 24% upside from the price as of this writing.
Netflix, on the other hand, has been in a sideways trading range, consolidating since hitting a high back in July.
But Tepper says that Netflix’s strong content slate should help the stock move higher next year.
“They’ve got the secret sauce in the streaming game,” Tepper said. “They’ve got the perfect blend of quantity and quality. I think Netflix has more pricing power than Disney. I think it goes a lot higher from here.”
Aside from Amazon and Netflix, TradingAnalysis.com founder Todd Gordon says the stock to watch amid the rebalancing is Match.
Gordon says Match has done for dating what Zoom did for videoconferencing as the pandemic forced daters to stay home.
But Match shares have rallied more than 232% since the market bottom on March 23, and have gained 29% since the stock consolidated between early August and late October, and Gordon says the stock is likely to soon see a band of resistance.
“Resistance does come in at about $165,” Gordon said. The stock’s relative strength “has not quite reached the old highs of an 88 reading so a little bit more room to go. I hold the stock. I’ll be cautious at this level around $165.”
Match shares closed at $148.75 on Thursday, roughly 10% below the $165 level.