2020’s Worst Stocks Are Among 2021’s Best

Plus: A New COVID Drug You are receiving this limited-time email resource as a subscriber to Kiplinger's free e-newsletters. To unsubscribe at any time, simply click the link in the footer below. MARCH 8, 2021 [View in browser]( HOW TO PROTECT AND GROW YOUR BUSINESS AND INVESTMENTS NOW Financial media, ourselves included, has a tendency to talk about stocks in sectors; financials are doing well, or technology stocks aren’t, for example. But sometimes, the market’s story is more granular than that. That brings us to CFRA’s Chief Investment Strategist Sam Stovall, who recently looked at the S&P 500’s best and worst stocks of 2020 from a sub-industry level and discovered that 2021 is indeed the year of the rebound, at least so far. --------------------------------------------------------------- SPONSORED CONTENT FROM CRE INCOME FUND [Income Investors Are Earning a Tax-Advantaged 12% Dividend Yield]( The average annual return of commercial real estate over 20 years is roughly 9.5%, nearly 1% greater than the S&P 500's average annual return of 8.6%. Commercial Real Estate experts are making investments in high-quality Technology and Industrial infrastructure that are normally accessible only to institutional investors. The CRE Diversified Income Fund pays an annual 12% dividend yield and is a long-term strategy that returns $31,000 for every $10,000 invested and compounded annually over the next ten years. [READ MORE]( --------------------------------------------------------------- All 10 of 2020’s worst sub-industries are not just up in 2021, but they’re up by anywhere between 13.2% and 49.4%. Half of that list is made up of energy-related industries, such as integrated oil and gas companies (+40.5% YTD), equipment and services providers (+27.2%) and exploration and production firms (+49.4%) -- no surprise given that the broader energy sector is up almost 40% in just a little more than two months. However, hiding in a middle-of-the-pack real estate sector are retail REITs, which are up 18.4% after a lot of bloodletting in 2020. Also up substantially since Jan. 1 are hotels, resorts and cruise lines (+13.2%), drug retail (+18.4%) and airlines (+20.1%). And if you’re wondering, yes, most of 2020’s best sub-industries are reverting to the mean in 2021, but not all. Agricultural & farm machinery (+30.0%), copper (+34.6%) and semiconductor equipment (+14.6%) continue to shine. Move over, remdesivir. A new COVID-19 treatment drug is showing the ability to significantly reduce virus amounts after three to five days of treatment. The drug, molnupiravir, is developed by Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and works by blocking the virus’ ability to replicate itself. It will be the first COVID-19 drug to be taken orally, and will be manufactured and distributed by Merck. Molnupiravir’s current study is continuing to determine whether it reduces hospitalizations and deaths, and should be finished at the end of the month. A date for distribution has not been determined yet. Free download, [The Kiplinger Letter's Forecast](. No information required from you. SPONSORED CONTENT FROM SMARTASSET [7 Secrets Comfortable Retirees Know About Financial Advisors]( Choosing the right financial advisor can determine your financial trajectory for years to come. [READ MORE]( LATEST INVESTING NEWS FROM KIPLINGER.COM [Claim These "Above-the-Line" Deductions on Your Tax Return (Even If You Don't Itemize)]( [Can Your Boss Force You to Get a COVID-19 Vaccine?]( [10 High-Yield ETFs for Income-Minded Investors]( [7 Best Ways to Play the Reflation Trade]( [Get Kiplinger's Free Tax Tips E-Newsletter to Claim Every Tax Break You're Entitled to on Your 2020 Return]( [Kiplinger] [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [LinkedIn]( Send this to a friend. [Click here.]( All content ©2021 The Kiplinger Washington Editors 1100 13th Street, NW, Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20005 Thank you for subscribing to Kiplinger's A Step Ahead, a free resource to help readers navigate the economic recovery from COVID-19. If you ever wish to stop receiving this service, please [click here to unsubscribe](.