4 Stocks That Remain In Uptrends Despite Market Sell-Off

These four stocks keep going higher even as the Standard & Poor’s 500 and the Nasdaq Composite keep going lower.

That these can continue upward while most other stocks continue downward makes them candidates for closer examination. There are no guarantees that outperformance will continue but, on the other hand, a trend is a trend.

Eli Lilly
LLY
(NYSE: LLY)

The old school drug manufacturer makes drugs that people need, the opposite of consumer discretionary. It’s likely they’ll have paying customers even during a business contraction. Earnings this year are off by 9.80%. The past 5-year EPS growth rate is up by 18.90%.

Long-term debt exceeds shareholder equity but the analysts don’t seem that concerned: UBS upgraded the company to “buy” on 9/22 with a price target of $363. Morgan Stanley
MS
has the stock as “overweight,” price target of $364. Eli Lilly pays a 1.20% dividend.

Globe Life
GL
(NYSE: GL)

This insurance company is held by Berkshire Hathaway
BRK.B
, the legendary investment firm run by Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger. This year’s earnings are up by 5.80% and the past 5-year earnings growth comes in at 10.40%. Shareholder equity is greater than long-term debt.

This favorite of the famous Omaha value investors trades at 1.96 times book value with a price-earnings ratio of 15 and a forward p/e of 11. The analysts at Raymond James just issued a “strong buy” for the stock and mentioned a price target of $138. Globe Life pays a dividend of .78%.

Murphy Oil

MUR
Corp (NYSE: MUR)

This week’s sudden up move back to the May/June peak is the result of buyers returning on the news that Saudi Arabia and its partners would be cutting oil production. That would mean higher petroleum prices which would make Murphy and other companies in that sector more profitable.

The company is already doing well, earnings this year are up by 93.70% and its past 5-year record shows growth of 21.70%. MKM Partners analysts established a “buy” rating for the stock back in June with a then price target of $38. Murphy Oil pays a 2.30% dividend.

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM)

Unum Group is a life insurance company with U. S. corporate headquarters in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It has a value stock profile with the price-earnings ratio of 7.62 and trading at a 14% discount to book. This year’s earnings are up by 3.40%. The EPS growth for the past 5 years is .40%.

Unum pays a 3.17% dividend. Raymond James initiated coverage in September with a “market perform” rating. In May, Citigroup
C
began coverage with a “neutral” rating and a price target of $36.

For comparison to the market as a whole, here’s the weekly price chart for the S&P 500:

Not investment advice. For educational purposes only.