These 3 Stocks Have Crushed the Market This Year. Here's Why There Is More Upside Ahead
Written by Prosper Junior Bakiny for The Motley Fool -> Moderna is racing towards important clinical and regulatory catalysts. Krystal Biotech still has a large market to address in its core area. AMD is a great pick for investors looking to cash in on AI. Despite economic he
Moderna is racing towards important clinical and regulatory catalysts.
Krystal Biotech still has a large market to address in its core area.
Despite economic headwinds and geopolitical tensions, equities have performed fairly well so far this year. The S&P 500 is up by a solid 8% to date. Some companies are doing an even more impressive job of overcoming all the challenges and volatility. Consider these three stocks that have left broader equities in the dust this year: Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) , Krystal Biotech (NASDAQ: KRYS) , and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) . Despite their strong performances this year, these companies are still worth investing in.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks »
Moderna, the famous vaccine maker that was one of the leaders in the coronavirus market, is making significant progress toward important new approvals. The company is inching closer to earning the green light for its influenza vaccine, mRNA-1010. This product could help address an unmet market need, as the low effectiveness of current flu vaccines leaves many patients -- particularly the elderly, whom Moderna is targeting with mRNA-1010 -- at risk of severe cases of the disease and hospitalization. An approval here would be an important step forward for the vaccine maker.
The company expects several other catalysts over the next two years, including the launch of its norovirus vaccine and several data readouts. Moderna's pipeline includes several highly promising candidates. One of them is mRNA-4157, an investigational personalized cancer vaccine currently undergoing several phase 2 and phase 3 studies. Over the next few years, Moderna could make significant clinical and regulatory progress while also posting much stronger financial results. That's why, even though its shares are up 100% this year, it could still deliver solid returns over the next decade.
Krystal Biotech is performing well thanks to Vyjuvek, a medicine for a rare disease called dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB). This genetic condition leads to extremely fragile skin. Patients with DEB get painful blisters from otherwise minor friction. Vyjuvek, a gene therapy for DEB, was the first medicine to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for this disease. It has helped Krystal Biotech generate rapidly growing revenue and earnings. The drugmaker is on an 11-quarter streak of positive earnings per share, which is fairly impressive for a biotech company of this size with only a single product on the market.
The good news is that Krystal Biotech still has a large addressable market to tap into with Vyjuvek, as it continues to expand to new regions in Europe and elsewhere. Expect the company's top line to continue moving in the right direction for the foreseeable future. Further, Krystal Biotech boasts over half a dozen pipeline candidates, and we should see clinical trial data for at least some of them over the next few years. Between the strong performance of its leading product, Vyjuvek, and potential clinical catalysts that could lead to brand-new approvals, Krystal Biotech looks likely to continue beating the market. The stock is up 38% this year. But it's not too late to buy.
