For much of the previous 18 months, investors have enjoyed the historic rally. Since bottoming out in March of last year, the S&P 500 has now doubled in value. For some context, the S&P 500 has had an average annualized return (including dividends) of nearly 11% since the start of 1980.
But for some stocks, there is still plenty of upside left. According to high-water price targets from some analysts, the following two growth stocks can give you a share-price upside ranging from 187% to 434% over the next 12 months.
Plug Power: Possible upside of 187%
The first high-growth stock with the possibility to get your motors running is the hydrogen fuel-cell company called Plug Power. Analyst Amit Dayal of H.C. Wainwright thinks Plug Power is going toward $78, which is far from its ending price of $27.19, as of this previous weekend. Dayal’s Street-high price target implies a 187% boost in the company’s shares.
The excitement about Plug Power has to do with developed nations emphasizing greener energy to lower carbon emissions. Plug’s hydrogen fuel cells can then be used to power commercial and consumer vehicles, and they have other applications too (like forklifts). Further, there is an opportunity for the company to benefit at many levels of this green-energy change, like in building hydrogen refilling stations.
The buzz around this company reached a crescendo back in January, shortly after Plug got two major partnerships. First, SK Group got a 10% equity stake in the company and agreed to create a joint venture to have fuel-cell technology brought to South Korea and other Asian nations. A few days after, Plug and French vehicle maker Renault made an agreement to create a joint venture to go after Europe’s light commercial-vehicle sector.
There is absolutely no question that Plug Power has top partners and an amazing opportunity at its doorstep. The next question is: Can it grow into its current $16 billion cap with profitability still so far away? To that end, I am not so certain.
Inovio Pharmaceuticals: Possible upside of 434%
The top upside opportunity, at least in this article, is the biotech stock Inovio Pharmaceuticals. According to analyst Hartaj Singh from Oppenheimer, Inovio is expected to hit $35 per share. Based on its $6.55 ending price last week, this implies a possible 434% upside to the company’s shares.
Singh’s bullishness is mostly centered around the company’s development of a covid disease vaccine. With billions of people still not being inoculated, there is room for new vaccine players.
On the other hand, Inovio’s development of its coronavirus vaccine, INO-4800, has only been as dubious as its long-term drug-creation record. Last year, it seemed as though Inovio had a real shot at having one of the first vaccines to hit the market. Unfortunately, their plans were derailed by partial clinical holds in the U.S. To boot, the United States eventually pulled phase 3 trial funding, which then forced Inovio to have its large-scale phase 3 study within Mexico and other nations around the world.
Perhaps the bigger issue here is that, even with robust clinical pipelines, Inovio has not yet brought a drug to market more than 40 years after it was created. The company has been lucky enough to bring in capital to keep its work going, but it has never been able to deliver on the hype around the company. Suffice it to say, I do not foresee a $35 price target working out anytime soon, if ever.
Author: Steven Sinclaire
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