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Wall Street analysts had a slate of top picks at the start of the year, but not all of them are performing as expected even as the market continues its bull run. Stocks are rising this year, driven by investors’ confidence in artificial intelligence-related advancements, a better-than-expected earnings season and a healthier macroeconomic environment. The S & P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both hit record highs on Friday. Using FactSet data, Tech Zone Daily Pro looked for S & P 500 stocks that analysts projected would have the best performance in 2024, according to their consensus price targets. Now, we’re tracking how well the analysts’ picks have performed just three months into the new year. Below is the full list of names and how they’re performing: Of the list, chipmaker Nvidia and drugmaker Viatris have performed the best, gaining roughly 59% and 24% so far this year, respectively. But there have been a lot of misses so far in the group. Nvidia cemented its position as Wall Street’s darling after its latest earnings report, in which it reported $22.10 billion in revenue for its fiscal fourth quarter — a 265% increase from a year ago. The company surpassed $2 trillion in market cap during intraday trading Friday. About 93% of analysts surveyed by LSEG hold a buy rating on Nvidia and have an average price target of $832.52. That would imply about 5% upside from current levels. Viatris, which was spun off from Pfizer in November 2020 , has also lived up to analysts’ expectations this year after a downbeat 2023 performance. Hedge fund Greenlight Capital, led by David Einhorn , recently established a position in the company, saying stabilizing generic drug pricing and lesser competition in the space could benefit the stock. “The company’s revenue and cash flow are now growing, and we expect this improvement to accelerate,” Einhorn had said about Viatris. About 60% of the analysts covering the stock rate Viatris a hold, and the average price target of $14.13 suggests just over 5% of upside from here, per LSEG. The company is expected to report quarterly results on Wednesday. Warner Bros. Discovery is a stock that has continued to decline, on the other hand, instead of picking up steam. Shares of Warner Bros. are down nearly 25% in the new year, and have lost about 45% over the past 12 months. The media conglomerate last week reported a miss on analysts’ estimates for the fourth quarter. Further, Warner Bros. did not give free cash flow guidance for 2024. The company’s flagship subscription streaming service, Max, ended 2023 profitable, however. Other companies from the list that are in the red year to date include energy giants APA Corp and Halliburton , as well as Caesars Entertainment .
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