4 Discretionary Stocks to Buy on Rising Hopes of a December Rate Cut

Signs of the economy becoming stable have lifted investors’ sentiment, leading to a rebound in stocks over the last two sessions. Concerns over the economy’s health and uncertainty over a rate cut by the Federal Reserve in December saw volatility return to Wall Street in November.

However, positive economic data have reinstated investors’ faith in the economy and raised hopes of another rate cut by the Fed in its December policy meeting.

Given this situation, it would be ideal to invest in consumer stocks that are likely to get a further boost during the holiday season. We have selected four stocks, namely, Carnival Corporation & plc CCL, fuboTV Inc. FUBO, Ralph Lauren Corporation RL and Roku, Inc. ROKU, for investors.

These stocks have seen positive earnings estimate revisions in the past 60 days, carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), and are set for solid returns. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Rate Cut Hopes Rise

High inflation had already been worrying investors, and a shrinking labor market over the past several months further raised concerns about a slowing economy that could eventually slip into a recession. However, some positive economic data over the past week have lifted investor confidence lately.

Wall Street rallied on Wednesday for the second straight day as investors regained faith in artificial intelligence stocks and a better-than-expected jobs data raised hopes of a December rate cut.  Payroll processor ADP’s report showed that private payrolls unexpectedly declined in November, with just 32,000 job additions, lower than the consensus estimate of 40,000.

Investors treated bad news as good news and started betting that a shrinking job market would lead the Federal Reserve to go ahead with another interest rate cut in December.  The Federal Reserve last cut interest rates by 25 basis points in October, saying that the move was to support a slowing jobs market despite inflation remaining above its 2% target.

Investors believe that the same reason will lead the Fed to another rate cut in December. Markets are now pricing in an 89.2% chance of a quarter percentage point rate cut by the Fed in its December FOMC meeting, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

Also, inflation increased at a slower pace in September. The producer price index (PPI) showed that wholesale prices increased 0.3% sequentially in September. Core PPI, which excludes the volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.1% month over month in September, lower than the consensus estimate of a rise of 0.2%. This could give the Fed further confidence in going for a rate cut.

4 Consumer Discretionary Stocks With Upside

Carnival Corporation & plc

Carnival Corporation & plc operates as a cruise and vacation company. As a single economic entity, CCL forms the largest cruise operator in the world. Carnival Corporation & plcis the world’s leading leisure travel firm and carries nearly half of the global cruise guests.

Carnival Corporation’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 52.8%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings improved 1.4% over the last 60 days. CCL currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

fuboTV

fuboTV Inc. offers a sports-first live TV streaming platform as well as news and entertainment content. fuboTV is based in New York.

fuboTV’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved more than 100% over the past 60 days. FUBO currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Ralph Lauren Corporation

Ralph Lauren Corporation is a major designer, marketer and distributor of premium lifestyle products in North America, Europe, Asia and internationally. RL offers products in apparel, footwear, accessories, home furnishings, and other licensed product categories.

Ralph Lauren’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 25%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current-year earnings has improved 3% over the past 60 days. RL has a Zacks Rank #2.

Roku, Inc. 

Roku, Inc. is the leading TV streaming platform provider in the United States, Canada and Mexico based on hours streamed.

Roku’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current-year earnings has improved 83.3% over the past 60 days. ROKU has a Zacks Rank #2.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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