In this article, we discuss the 10 stocks that doubled in 2021.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently forecast that the global economy will grow 5.9% in 2021, down from 6% growth predicted in July. According to the international body, the downward revision reflected the supply chain disruptions that were hampering the post-pandemic economic recovery of advanced economies as well as the worsening pandemic dynamics in developing economies. The report captures the two macro-trends that have shaped the stock market this year — a stop-and-start recovery and increased volatility.
Supply chain disruptions have increased the prices of goods in an environment where demand was already beating the supply, justifiably invoking inflation fears. In addition, the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus, coupled with the retail investor frenzy in equity trading, has increased volatility. The stock market volume is pushing record highs. With the government refusing to raise interest rates, the market is constantly in flux, with valuations of growth stocks reaching unprecedented levels.
In this uncertain environment, investors should consider some stocks that have posted impressive year-to-date gains. Some of the stocks that have more than doubled in 2021 include NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), and Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN), among others discussed in detail below.
Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash
Our Methodology
Here is our list of the 10 stocks that doubled in 2021. These were picked according to their year-to-date gains. Only those companies that have year-to-date gains of over 100% were selected. The exact gains in share price are mentioned alongside other details about the companies below.
You will see many stocks on this list that more than doubled in 2021, on a year-to-date basis.
The hedge fund sentiment around each stock was gauged using the data of 873 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey.
Why pay attention to hedge fund holdings? Insider Monkey’s research was able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 86 percentage points since March 2017. Between March 2017 and July 2021 our monthly newsletter’s stock picks returned 186.1%, vs. 100.1% for the SPY. Our stock picks outperformed the market by more than 86 percentage points (see the details here). That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. You can subscribe to our free newsletter on our homepage to receive our stories in your inbox.
Stocks that Doubled in 2021
10. Tecnoglass Inc. (NASDAQ:TGLS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 11
Year-To-Date Gain: 329%
Tecnoglass Inc. (NASDAQ:TGLS) operates in the building products industry. The stock has registered incredible gains over the past twelve months as the housing industry booms. The firm has used this opportunity to launch new products that are doing very well. Despite shutting production for one month at the height of the pandemic, the firm managed to deliver blowout earnings in the latter half of the past year, carrying that momentum into 2021. It recently beat market expectations on earnings per share by $0.09.
In August, Raymond James analyst Joshua Wilson raised the price target on Tecnoglass Inc. (NASDAQ:TGLS) stock to $26 from $15 and kept a Strong Buy rating on the shares, backing the firm to continue generating attractive sales and margin growth.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 11 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $58 million in Tecnoglass Inc. (NASDAQ:TGLS), up from 10 in the preceding quarter worth $30 million.
Just like NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), and Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN), Tecnoglass Inc. (NASDAQ:TGLS) is one of the stocks attracting the attention of elite investors.
9. Veritiv Corporation (NYSE:VRTV)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14
Year-To-Date Gain: 581%
Bank of America analyst John Babcock has a Buy rating on Veritiv Corporation (NYSE:VRTV) stock with a price target of $86. The analyst highlighted that the revenue growth estimates for the firm remained strong heading into the fourth quarter. The company, which provides packaging products and services, smashed analyst estimates on earnings in the third quarter and raised full-year guidance numbers recently.
Sal Abbate, the CEO of Veritiv Corporation (NYSE:VRTV), said during the earnings call that strong packaging sales growth and operational improvements helped drive record net income for the company in the past few months.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 14 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $254 million in Veritiv Corporation (NYSE:VRTV), up from 13 in the preceding quarter worth $186 million.
8. Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18
Year-To-Date Gain: 342%
Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) is among a host of department store stocks that have recovered strongly from the lows of 2020 when the virus crisis forced many shops to close business. One indication of the recovery has been the dividend payout. In August, the firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, an increase of 33% from the previous dividend of $0.15 per share. The forward yield was 0.41%.
Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) also stands to benefit from the holiday season coming up. The National Retail Federation has predicted that retailers will enjoy the highest ever sales on record this season, predicted to be somewhere near $860 billion.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Chicago-based firm Citadel Investment Group is a leading shareholder in Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) with 79,824 shares worth more than $14.4 million.
In its Q4 2020 investor letter, Longleaf Partners Small-Cap Fund, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Dillard’s (-48%, -2.80%; –, –), the department store, detracted for the year. We had successfully owned the company during a downturn before and felt that we were paying a low mid-single-digit multiple on stable FCF with a great management team in charge when we first initiated the position in 2019. Our case was supported by the potential for management to monetize part of the company’s valuable owned retail real estate footprint for higher and better uses. COVID lockdowns, however, permanently impaired these values, as well as the company’s ability to go on offense with share buybacks, despite great efforts during the crisis by CEO Bill Dillard. We sold our position in the second quarter as the price-to-value gap closed and our case had changed materially.”
7. Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18
Year-To-Date Gain: 405%
Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) stock has surged on the back of rising coal prices that touched two-year highs early last month. One reason for the high prices is that power plants are shifting to coal as natural gas prices increase, but since miners have reduced production capacity by 40% in the past six years, coal has become an expensive commodity. With the industry not expected to increase output immediately, it seems like the high prices will linger on for longer than expected, driving revenues for Peabody.
This is primarily why analysts like Benchmark are bullish on Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU). Benchmark analyst Nathan Martin recently upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold with a price target of $16, highlighting the free cash flow potential of the company.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 18 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $297 million in Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU), down from 21 in the preceding quarter worth $122 million.
6. Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 26
Year-To-Date Gain: 151%
Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC) markets systems software solutions. The company has strong fundamentals. It recently beat market estimates on earnings per share and revenue for the second quarter by $0.28 and $16 million respectively. The stock has surged on the back of reports that the company is donating nearly 70% of the research and development revenue on the cloud business, a significant revenue source for the company.
Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty recently upgraded Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC) stock to Overweight from Equal Weight and increased the price target to $66 from $55, underlining that the cloud business of the company was “underappreciated” by investors.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 26 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $504 million in Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC), the same as in the previous quarter worth $480 million.
In addition to NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), and Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN), Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC) is one of the stocks that hedge funds are buying.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, First Eagle Investment Management, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Teradata Corporation (NYSE:TDC) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Leading contributors in the First Eagle Global Fund this quarter included Teradata Corporation. A longstanding participant in the data warehousing space, Teradata has been transitioning its focus from on-premises database management and analytics to the rapidly growing cloud-computing market. Recent company reports suggest this shift is gaining traction, to the benefit of its Teradata’s share price, as the company posted significantly higher annual recurring revenue from its public cloud-based software business relative to a year ago.”
5. Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 27
Year-To-Date Gain: 706%
Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) features on our list of stocks that doubled in 2021. The short interest on the stock is close to 30%. On November 2, the shares soared 99% in a day of trading that saw 25 million shares of the firm swap hands. The company reported earnings for the third quarter a day earlier, beating market estimates on earnings per share and revenue by $4.06 and $220 million.
JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank have both downgraded Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) stock recently. The former has an Underweight rating with a price target of $225 while the latter has a Sell rating with a price target $210.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm SRS Investment Management is a leading shareholder in Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) with 18.4 million shares worth more than $1.4 billion.
4. Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35
Year-To-Date Gain: 171%
Cowen analyst Oliver Chen recently raised the price target on Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) stock to $32 from $27 and maintained an Outperform rating. Chen cautioned against reports of the company separating the ecommerce business from the parent firm, echoing sentiments made by Morgan Stanley earlier that the spinoff “did not make sense” since ecommerce would carry over over $11 billion in revenue as a separate entity, depreciating the share value of the stock.
Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) stock has rallied since early October after Jana Partners LLC, an event-driven investment management firm, confirmed that it had bought a stake in the firm. The size of the stake has not yet been confirmed.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Texas-based investment firm Yacktman Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) with 8.2 million shares worth more than $157 million.
3. Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50
Year-To-Date Gain: 166%
Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) is one of the energy stocks that have benefited massively from the recent increase in oil prices. The company, which had been in gradual recovery mode after the lows of 2020, was also given a boost after it hiked fixed-plus-variable dividend by 71% and beat market predictions on earnings for the third quarter. Analysts have forecast that oil firms will outperform the benchmark S&P 500 in the coming months.
Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) was one of the firms exploring the acquisition of the Permian Basin oil fields owned by Shell, according to news publication Bloomberg. However, rival ConocoPhillips purchased them for close to $10 billion at the end of September this year.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Wyoming-based investment firm Adage Capital Management is a leading shareholder in Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) with 7.5 million shares worth more than $219 million.
In its Q4 2020 investor letter, GoodHaven Capital Management, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“After a rough start to the year our two biggest energy holdings – WPX Energy rebounded materially in the last six months though energy was still our biggest detractor for the year. I’ve previously written about deciding earlier this year to direct new capital towards better businesses versus adding more to the energy sector, but given the material optionality at WPX, we opted to maintain a material exposure. Recently WPX announced an all stock merger with a larger competitor – Devon Energy – which will leave the new company with plenty of cash flow at lower oil prices, less leverage, and material upside to higher commodity prices.”
2. Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 55
Year-To-Date Gain: 113%
Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) stock has posted incredible gains this year as the company invests heavily in electric vehicles. New EVs, including the flagship F-150 electric truck, one of the most hyped launches of the year, have renewed interest in the automaker as a serious EV player. The company is also gaining a lot of traction among retail investors on internet forums like Reddit and Robinhood.
Benchmark analyst Michael Ward recently maintained a Buy rating on Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) stock and raised the price target to $20 from $18, appreciating the earnings beat of the firm in the third quarter.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 55 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $2.10 billion in Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), up from 49 in the preceding quarter worth $2.19 billion.
In its Q1 2020 investor letter, Greenlight Capital Fund, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“General Motors (GM) was a disappointment. The damage from last year’s strike consumed most of the cash flow GM would have otherwise generated in 2019. We had expected a strong bounce back in earnings and cash flow in 2020, but the annual guidance, while meeting Wall Street expectations, was worse than we expected. Further, the cash burned during the strike needed to be re-earned in order to protect GM’s investment grade rating. Pre-crisis, there would have been, at best, a minimal share repurchase late in the year. At the analyst day, our hopes that 2020 would finally be the year were dashed. We sold our stock. Over our five-year holding period, we made a 9.6% IRR on GM. In the difficult environment, its most comparable peer, Ford, lost about half its value.”
1. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 86
Year-To-Date Gain: 103%
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) has climbed this year as chip prices have skyrocketed amid high demand and supply chain issues. The rise of crypto mining, many of which require high-powered chips made by the firm, has also helped push the stock higher. Since analysts predict that chip prices will remain high well into 2022, and as crypto stocks rally again after a second quarter slowdown, the stock still has room to climb higher.
Piper Sandler, KeyBanc, and Summit Insights are all constructive on NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) for the coming months. The company is also looking to expand by marketing special chips aimed at cloud companies and data centers.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 86 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $9 billion in NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), up from 80 the preceding quarter worth $6 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Vulcan Value Partners, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“NVIDIA Corp. is the dominant supplier of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) worldwide. NVIDIA’s GPUs are at the intersection of a number of important computing trends including the movement to the Cloud, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, edge computing, gaming, and more. We previously owned NVIDIA and sold it in the third quarter of 2020 as the price to value gap closed and our margin of safety was reduced. As with all our MVP companies, we continued to follow NVIDIA closely. Since that time, NVIDIA reported excellent results and its value has compounded rapidly. The technology selloff at the beginning of the year negatively affected the stock price while our estimate of NVIDIA’s value per share increased. This happy combination of events created a margin of safety and an opportunity to once again add NVIDIA to the portfolio.”
You can also take a peek at 10 Companies that Benefit From Crypto Mining and 15 Best Strong Buy Stocks to Invest In.
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Disclosure. None. 10 Stocks that Doubled in 2021 is originally published on Insider Monkey.
