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Beloved RPG 'The World Ends With You' will get a sequel, 14 years later

Jon Fingas
·Associate Editor
·1 min read

You no longer have to make do with ports of the original game if you want another The World Ends With You fix. Square Enix has unveiled Neo: The World Ends With You, a full-fledged sequel to the classic Nintendo DS JRPG for the PS4 (what, no PS5?) and Switch. You play Rindo as he travels a hyper-stylized Shibuya to deal with another dreaded “Reaper’s Game” where losing wipes people out of existence.

There aren’t too many details about gameplay changes or the plot, but the distinctive graffiti-inspired art style and character design (made in part by Final Fantasy’s Tetsuya Nomura) remain intact. It’s also clear the action role-playing is as frenetic as ever, if clearly taking better advantage of modern consoles.

Neo arrives in summer 2021, or roughly 14 years after The World Ends With You made its debut. That’s a long time to go between releases, but Square Enix is clearly betting that the earlier Switch port and nostalgia will draw you in.

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  • Wall Street Analysts Say These 5 Stocks Are A Buy As The World Prepares For The Post-COVID-19 Era

    From escalating tensions between the U.S. and China, the highly infectious coronavirus pandemic outbreak, and the 2020 presidential Election, this year has turned into a rollercoaster ride for investors. Forced lockdowns weighed down industries like the oil & gas sector, retail businesses, theatre, and entertainment companies, but spurred an uptick in technology stocks.With Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) reporting high efficacy for their COVID-19 vaccines but the number of new virus cases getting reported remaining high, the analysts are expecting a change in market behavior as the world moves to what they describe as a post-COVID-19 world.CNBC compiled a list of five stocks with an upside potential based on opinions from leading Wall Steet analysts. Here's a peek into these stocks and the key factors influencing the analyst forecasts.Amazon: The pandemic might have shrunk the global economy, however, Jeff Bezos' Amazon Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) rose to cross the $1.5 trillion market cap. The e-commerce company's stock peaked at a 52-week high price of $3,552.25 in early September.Amazon stock grew approximately 63% on a year-to-date basis and close to 91% since March when the signs of a pandemic became evident.Last week, Needham analyst Laura Martin rated Amazon as a buy -- setting a price target of $3,700, according to TipRanks. Based on Martin's survey results of a select number of Amazon customers, CNBC reported that 80% of the survey participants would stick to their online shopping trends even during the post-pandemic era.In the Q3 earnings release in October, Amazon reported $96.1 billion in revenue at a 37% growth rate year-over-year. Amazon last quoted $3,099.40, 0.57% lower, on Friday.Bentley Systems: RBC Capital analyst Matthew Hedberg revised software company Bentley Systems Inc (NASDAQ: BSY) as a "Buy" stock last week, with a price target of $43, CNBC reports. "Overall, we think a vaccine could benefit Bentley, and a Biden presidency could boost U.S. infrastructure spending," Hedberg commented.The forecasts were based on the company's earnings beat in its first release since the trading debut in September. In Q3, Bentley's $203 million quarterly revenues recorded a growth rate of 8.8% YoY with an 11% YoY growth in recurring revenues for the trailing 12-month period.The company, on Nov. 12, announced plans to issue 10 million shares at $32 per share and use the proceeds to pay off the outstanding balances of credit facilities. From $25.18 on Sept. 22, the stock has gained 41% and was last seen trading at $35.55, 1.22% higher.PDF Solutions: San Jose-based software and engineering services company PDF Solutions Inc (NASDAQ: PDFS) received a Buy rating from the Northland Capital analyst Gus Richard after the news of the $35 million Cimetrix acquisition broke out, as per the CNBC report. Richard raised the stock's price target to $30, last seen quoting $21.28.Richard says that "PDFS/ Cimetrix together can allow equipment suppliers to collect operational data from equipment and use PDFS big data analytics platform and AI to analyze equipment operational, performance, and process control data", as reported by CNBC.Accounting for the acquisition impact in the post-pandemic economy, Richard also anticipates that CY21 earnings could gain between $0.02 and $0.04 per share.Cytokinetics: At the end of Friday's trading session, Cytokinetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYTK) was trading at $15.99, 0.95% higher. H.C. Wainright & Co analyst Joseph Pantginis predicts that the biopharma company's stock holds a 180% upside potential, with an estimated price target of $43.The analyst's forecasts are pinned on the success of omecamtiv mecarbil, the company's treatment for heart failures."While a deeper analysis is yet to be conducted and more details are needed to clarify omecamtiv's real opportunity in HF, we believe these findings suggest a possible path forward for omecamtiv's approval based on its applicability for the treatment of a defined, significant, population," Pantginis said, as per CNBC.Yelp: Yelp Inc (NYSE: YELP), the San-Francisco headquartered online review company, has lost around 7% year-to-date. But, since March 18, when the lockdown measures began to kick in, the stock has rallied upwards by 123%.RBC Capital analyst Shweta Khajuria's analysis of the stock's performance is based on the economic revival in the post-pandemic era. Linking the vaccine availability and distribution with the economic revival, the RBC Capital Analyst opines that shopping centers, restaurants and bars, and other retail outlets would witness an increase in footfalls."Management expects Yelp to drive greater benefits from the improvement in its value proposition to advertisers, both perceived and actual to take a greater share of Advertiser budgets," CNBC quoted Khajuria as saying.On Friday's close, Yelp had a market cap close to $2.4 billion and was trading at $32.22, 1.19% higher.Latest Ratings for PFE DateFirmActionFromTo Nov 2020Goldman SachsReinstatesNeutral Nov 2020BernsteinInitiates Coverage OnMarket Perform Oct 2020SVB LeerinkMaintainsMarket Perform View More Analyst Ratings for PFE View the Latest Analyst RatingsSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Pfizer, Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines Could Get Limited EU Approval Before Year-End: Report * Sinovac COVID-19 Vaccine Trial Halted In Brazil Over Adverse Event(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • Elizabeth Holmes Doesn't Want Jury To Hear How Much She Made, Court Filings Show

    Elizabeth Holmes, the former CEO of Theranos, wants to block information on her previous income and "luxurious" spending from being revealed in court, CNBC has reported.What Happened: Holmes' defense attorneys filed a motion to exclude reports showing her earnings and spending, because they might turn the jury against the defendant."The jury should not be subjected to arguments regarding Ms. Holmes' alleged purchase of luxury travel, 'fine wine,' or 'food delivery to her home,'" CNBC quoted the defense team saying in their motion."Many CEOs live in luxurious housing, buy expensive (vehicles) and clothing, travel luxuriously and associate with famous people -- as the government claims Ms. Holmes did."Holmes had a private jet and several assistants for "running her errands," according to CNBC.Why It Matters: Holmes is facing dozens of felony fraud charges and up to 20 years in prison.She and her partner Ramesh Balwan, a former president and chief operating officer at Theranos, told investors, board members and the general public that the company's products in development would be able to diagnose any disease, including cancer and diabetes, from just one drop of blood.Privately valued at one point at $9 billion, the startup was exposed by a Wall Street Journal investigation and ensuing public scrutiny that revealed the technology was nonexistent.The trial is scheduled to begin on March 9, 2021, in San Jose.Image: WikicommonsSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Wish Files For IPO, Acknowledges Challenges In Its China-Rooted Supply Chain * Apple Is Trying To 'Water Down' Bill Against Forced Labor In China: Washington Post(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • 3 Monster Growth Stocks That Still Have Room to Run

    Investors are in the market to make a profit, and that means finding the stocks with proven growth potential. Yes, it’s a cliché to remind everyone that past performance does not guarantee future results, but when a stock consistently shows strong share appreciation, over an extended period, it’s a positive sign for investors.With more than ten months behind us, the stocks that are now showing a combination of strong gains and a high near- to mid-term potential are going to attract investor interest.Bearing this in mind, we set out to find stocks flagged as exciting growth plays by Wall Street. Using TipRanks’ database, we locked in on three analyst-backed names that have already notched impressive gains and boast strong growth narratives for the long-term. Bandwidth, Inc. (BAND)We start in the communications software sector, where Bandwidth is a leading provider of VoIP systems, using its application programming interfaces (API) to offer customers both text and voice capabilities. The company's products include applications for voice calling, text messaging, local phone numbers via internet, and 911 emergency phone system access. Bandwidth has developed and built its own network for voice over internet, helping to guarantee connectivity.Like many online tech companies, BAND has benefitted from the 2020’s shift to remote work. The move into the virtual office space has put a premium on internet communications, and BAND shares have reflected that – the stock is up an impressive 135% year-to-date. The company’s Q3 earnings were also strong – and at 14 cents per share were far above the 12 cent net EPS loss expected. Revenues for the third quarter came in at $84.8 million, for a 40% year-over-year increase.In addition to positive revenues and earnings, Bandwidth has also shown sound liquidity. The company had over $300 million in cash and cash equivalents available at the end of September, while liabilities totaled only $57.8 million.Finally, earlier this month, Bandwidth completed its acquisition of the European cloud communications company Voxbone. The deal was valued at 446 million Euros, or more than $520 million in US currency. The transaction included 354.6 million Euros in cash, and the remainder in stock.Bandwidth’s growth and healthy future prospects caught the attention of 5-star analyst Michael Walkley. Writing from Canaccord, this top analyst said, “With Covid-19 impacting the way we work, learn, and interact for the foreseeable future, we believe Bandwidth is a long-term beneficiary from anticipated strong growth trends due to increased customer usage of their platform. We believe revenue growth should remain strong given our expectations for some permanent long-term changes with an increased remote work environment driving both increasing usage from existing customers and layering in the potential for stronger new customer growth.”To this end, Walkley puts a Buy rating on BAND shares, and his $225 price target suggests room for nearly 50% upside in the next 12 months. (To watch Walkley’s track record, click here)Overall, BAND gets a Moderate Buy rating form the analyst consensus, based on 5 reviews, including 4 Buys and 1 Sell. The shares are priced at $150.50, and the average price target of $192.20 implies a one-year upside of ~28%. (See BAND stock analysis on TipRanks)Wayfair, Inc. (W)From cloud communications we move on to e-commerce, where Wayfair is a leader in the home goods and furniture sector. E-commerce has seen heavy gains during the COVID pandemic, as customers moved larger portions of their shopping online. The stock shows that, having grown 180% year-to-date.Earnings have also reflected strong sales during the pandemic period. EPS turned positive in Q2, coming in at $2.54 against a 55-cent forecast. In Q3, the earnings per share was $1.80, beating the estimate by 300%. Revenues are high, too, with the $3.8 billion in Q3 representing a 66% year-over-year gain. And like Bandwidth above, Wayfair has a sound balance sheet, with $2.6 billion in cash and liquid assets reported at the end of the third quarter.These fiscal gains stand on the shoulders of solid sales performance. Wayfair reported 11.3 million orders from repeat customers in Q3, making up almost 72% of the quarter’s total orders. Active customers in the company’s Direct Retail business segment increased 50% yoy, and reached 28.8 million.Peter Keith, 5-star analyst with Piper Sandler, writes of Wayfair, “Looking forward, KPI's repeat customers (% of orders) and revenue per average customer (LTM) both hit all-time highs and suggest Wayfair will grow revenues nicely off a larger base of customers… We maintain our bullish thesis as above-trend sales growth is likely to persist at least into early 2021, and margins are expanding far above expectations – with longer-term drivers coming into focus."It should come as no surprise, then, that Keith stays with the bulls. In addition to an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating, he left a $370 price target on the stock. Investors could be pocketing a gain of 47%, should this target be met in the twelve months ahead. (To watch Keith’s track record, click here)Overall, Wayfair has 20 reviews on record, including 10 Buys, 7 Hold, and 3 Sell, making the analyst consensus view a Moderate Buy. W stock is selling for $251.70 and has an average price target of $312.63, making the upside potential 24% for the coming months. (See Wayfair’s stock analysis on TipRanks)Schrodinger (SDGR)Last but not least is Schrodinger, a software company that develops applications for the life sciences and materials sciences industries. In short, the company builds the software platforms that allows customers to evaluate experimental compounds. Schrodinger describes its software as a physics-based platform, integrating solutions for collaboration, data analytics, and predictive modeling in chemistry. The platform is used extensively in the pharmaceutical industry, but also in aerospace, energy, and semiconductors.Schrodinger went public in February of this year, just as the corona crisis was ramping up, and quickly saw strong share gains. At the IPO, the stock sold for $26 per share, well above the initial pricing of $17. The company sold well over 11.8 million shares, making the opening one of the year’s most successful. Since then, SDGR shares have more than doubled, gaining nearly 140% in their first nine months of public trading.Revenues have remained consistent during the year, with the first three quarters of 2020 showing the top line between $23 and $26 million. The Q3 number, at $25 million, is right in the middle of that range. The Q3 top line beat the forecast by 10%Covering this stock for BMO, 5-star analyst Do Kim writes, “We believe the 42% y/y growth in software revenues reflects the accelerating adoption of computational drug discovery, in addition to a growing customer base. We expect software growth to continue into 2021, as we believe the pandemic trend of remote work is sticky, with increasing platform validation from collaborations.”In line with this upbeat outlook, Kim rates SDGR shares an Outperform (i.e. Buy) along with a $94 price target. This figure indicates confidence in a 37% one-year upside potential. (To watch Kim’s track record, click here)All in all, Schrodinger’s Strong Buy consensus rating is based on 3 Buys and 1 Hold. The stock has an average price target of $83, giving it a 21% upside from the current trading price of $68.52. (See SDGR stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for growth stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

  • A Tiny Electric Vehicle From China Is on a Wild Ride in the Market

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  • DPW's stock skyrockets after Coolisys EV charger sub sets up fast-food franchisee partner program

    Shares of DPW Holdings Inc. rocketed 163.9% on massive volume in midday trading Monday, enough to make them the best performer on major U.S. exchanges, after the investor in disruptive technologies said its Coolisys Technologies Corp. subsidiary established a program to get its electric vehicle (EV) chargers into national fast-food restaurants. Trading volume soared to 145.6 million shares, compared with the full-day average of about 2.6 million shares. DPW said it expects the program to allow owners of fast-food franchises to install the ACECool EV chargers and share in the revenue from advertising and network usage. Coolisys expects to launch the program in California, Nevada and Canada, with the unveiling of "a national fast-food network" partner, that forms a part of the network with over 1,000 locations. Other partners are expected to be announced in the first quarter of 2021. "We look forward to the potential changes coming from increased demand for EVs and the recent trends related to government support of the electrification of transport," said Coolisys Chief Executive Amos Kohn. DPW's stock has run up 189.7% over the past three months, while shares of rival EV charger company Blink Charging Co. has rocketed 327.9% and the S&P 500 has gained 4.9%.

  • Tesla defies doubters as builds on rally ahead of S&P 500 debut

    Up about 500% in 2020, Tesla has become by far the world's most valuable automaker, despite production that is a fraction of Toyota, Volkswagen or General Motors. Tesla is now five times more valuable than GM and Ford combined and the latest rise in the Silicon Valley automaker's shares came after Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives bumped his price target to $560 from $500. Index funds trying to match the S&P 500's performance will have to buy more than $50 billion of Tesla's stock ahead of its inclusion on Dec. 21, and Goldman Sachs estimated last week that actively managed mutual funds could buy another $8 billion.

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  • China to Take Oil-Refining Crown Held by U.S. Since 19th Century

    (Bloomberg) -- Earlier this month, Royal Dutch Shell Plc pulled the plug on its Convent refinery in Louisiana. Unlike many oil refineries shut in recent years, Convent was far from obsolete: it’s fairly big by U.S. standards and sophisticated enough to turn a wide range of crude oils into high-value fuels. Yet Shell, the world’s third-biggest oil major, wanted to radically reduce refining capacity and couldn’t find a buyer.As Convent’s 700 workers found out they were out of a job, their counterparts on the other side of Pacific were firing up a new unit at Rongsheng Petrochemical’s giant Zhejiang complex in northeast China. It’s just one of at least four projects underway in the country, totaling 1.2 million barrels a day of crude-processing capacity, equivalent to the U.K.’s entire fleet.The Covid crisis has hastened a seismic shift in the global refining industry as demand for plastics and fuels grows in China and the rest of Asia, where economies are quickly rebounding from the pandemic. In contrast, refineries in the U.S and Europe are grappling with a deeper economic crisis while the transition away from fossil fuels dims the long-term outlook for oil demand.America has been top of the refining pack since the start of the oil age in the mid-nineteenth century, but China will dethrone the U.S. as early as next year, according to the International Energy Agency. In 1967, the year Convent opened, the U.S. had 35 times the refining capacity of China.The rise of China’s refining industry, combined with several large new plants in India and the Middle East, is reverberating through the global energy system. Oil exporters are selling more crude to Asia and less to long-standing customers in North America and Europe. And as they add capacity, China’s refiners are becoming a growing force in international markets for gasoline, diesel and other fuels. That’s even putting pressure on older plants in other parts of Asia: Shell also announced this month that they will halve capacity at their Singapore refinery.There are parallels with China’s growing dominance of the global steel industry in the early part of this century, when China built a clutch of massive, modern mills. Designed to meet burgeoning domestic demand, they also made China a force in the export market, squeezing higher-cost producers in Europe, North America and other parts of Asia and forcing the closure of older, inefficient plants.“China is going to put another million barrels a day or more on the table in the next few years,” Steve Sawyer, director of refining at industry consultant Facts Global Energy, or FGE, said in an interview. “China will overtake the U.S. probably in the next year or two.”Asia RisingBut while capacity will rise is China, India and the Middle East, oil demand may take years to fully recover from the damage inflicted by the coronavirus. That will push a few million barrels a day more of refining capacity out of business, on top of a record 1.7 million barrels a day of processing capacity already mothballed this year. More than half of these closures have been in the U.S., according to the IEA.About two thirds of European refiners aren’t making enough money in fuel production to cover their costs, said Hedi Grati, head of Europe-CIS refining research at IHS Markit. Europe still needs to reduce its daily processing capacity by a further 1.7 million barrels in five years.“There is more to come,” Sawyer said, anticipating the closure of another 2 million barrels a day of refining capacity through next year.Chinese refining capacity has nearly tripled since the turn of the millennium as it tried to keep pace with the rapid growth of diesel and gasoline consumption. The country’s crude processing capacity is expected to climb to 1 billion tons a year, or 20 million barrels per day, by 2025 from 17.5 million barrels at the end of this year, according to China National Petroleum Corp.’s Economics & Technology Research Institute.India is also boosting its processing capability by more than half to 8 million barrels a day by 2025, including a new 1.2 million barrels per day mega project. Middle Eastern producers are adding to the spree, building new units with at least two projects totaling more than a million barrels a day that are set to start operations next year.Plastic DrivenOne of the key drivers of new projects is growing demand for the petrochemicals used to make plastics. More than half of the refining capacity that comes on stream from 2019 to 2027 will be added in Asia and 70% to 80% of this will be plastics-focused, according to industry consultant Wood Mackenzie.The popularity of integrated refineries in Asia is being driven by the region’s relatively fast economic growth rates and the fact that it’s still a net importer of feedstocks like naphtha, ethylene and propylene as well as liquefied petroleum gas, used to make various types of plastic. The U.S. is a major supplier of naphtha and LPG to Asia.These new massive and integrated plants make life tougher for their smaller rivals, who lack their scale, flexibility to switch between fuels and ability to process dirtier, cheaper crudes.The refineries being closed tend to be relatively small, not very sophisticated and typically built in the 1960s, according to Alan Gelder, vice president of refining and oil markets at Wood Mackenzie. He sees excess capacity of around 3 million barrels a day. “For them to survive, they will need to export more products as their regional demand falls, but unfortunately they’re not very competitive, which means they’re likely to close.”Demand TrapGlobal oil consumption is on track to slump by an unprecedented 8.8 million barrels a day this year, averaging 91.3 million a day, according to the IEA, which expects less than two-thirds of this lost demand to recover next year.Some refineries were set to shutter even before the pandemic hit, as a global crude distillation capacity of about 102 million barrels a day far outweighed the 84 million barrels of refined products demand in 2019, according to the IEA. The demand destruction due to Covid-19 pushed several refineries over the brink.“What was expected to be a long, slow adjustment has become an abrupt shock,” said Rob Smith, director at IHS Markit.Adding to the pain of refiners in the U.S. are regulations pushing for biofuels. That encouraged some refiners to repurpose their plants for producing biofuels.Even China may be getting ahead of itself. Capacity additions are outpacing its demand growth. An oil products oversupply in the country may reach 1.4 million barrels a day in 2025, according to CNPC. Even as new refineries are built, China’s demand growth may peak by 2025 and then slow as the country begins its long transition toward carbon neutrality.“In an environment where the world has already got enough refining capacity, if you build more in one part of the world, you need to shut something down in another part of the world to maintain the balance,” FGE’s Sawyer said. “That’s the sort of environment that we are currently in and are likely to be in for the next 4-5 years at least.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Is Tesla Stock A Buy Right Now? Here's What Earnings, Charts Show

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  • Nio: The Future Looks Bright, Says Analyst

    Chinese electric-vehicle maker NIO Limited (NIO) surprised the market last week with a Q3 earnings report featuring stronger than expected $667 million in sales and a smaller than expected $154 million loss. One analyst who was not entirely pleased with the results, however, was Deutsche Bank's Edison Yu.Yu called Nio's revenue numbers only "in-line" and criticized Nio for producing "lower-than-expected gross margin." Despite this, Yu reiterated his "buy" rating on Nio, and raised his price target nearly 50% to $50 as well. Why?Two words: The future.Yu observes that Nio's Q3 2020 gross profit margin was only 12.9%, and not the 14.9% that he had hoped for, "mainly due to an absence of regulatory credits, which we thought would be realized during the quarter but instead will flow entirely into 4Q." That's not necessarily a deal-breaker, though, because Yu still does think those improvements in profitability are coming -- just three months later than planned. Nio guided investors to expect a 1% to 1.5% improvement in gross margins in Q4, versus Q3, from its own efforts. This still doesn't get the company all the way to "14.9%," granted. But when you factor in an anticipated $120 million in delayed "regulatory credits" from the government, and add those to the mix, Yu thinks the company's total gross profit margin in Q4 could approach 20%.Indeed, Yu seems to be banking on a lot of good news in the near future, and the longer-term future as well.Heading towards the Chinese New Year, Yu says investors can expect "robust monthly delivery volume" driven by demand for Nio's new EC6 electric SUV and the company's 100 kWh battery option. Nio is forecasting Q4 sales "materially ahead of our/consensus estimates," says the analyst, with anywhere from 16,500 to 17,000 cars expected to be delivered in the quarter, versus Yu's guess at 15,000 units, and with revenue similarly higher than predicted.Production capacity is ramping faster than expected as well, with Nio reaching perhaps 7,500 cars produced per month by January. As the company continues to scale in size, Yu is looking to see Nio produce and deliver as many as 92,500 cars in 2021, while improving its gross margin even past what he expects to see in Q4 -- to greater than 20%. Despite this, the analyst expects Nio to lose money next year -- $1.20 per share's-worth -- just as it will lose money this year.So why does Yu still like Nio, despite the continued  losses? In a nutshell, because he expects Nio to grow into its valuation over time. Sales in 2022, for example, could be up as much as 40% over 2021 figures, justifying (in Yu's view) a valuation of 10 times 2022 sales.Ultimately, Yu predicts that Nio will emerge as "a major winner in the China auto market by the middle of the decade," and he therefore calls Nio "a must-own stock for growth-oriented and ESG investors." (To watch Yu's track record, click here)Overall, based on 6 Buys and 3 Holds, the analyst consensus rates NIO a Moderate Buy. However, as a result of NIO's meteoric rise, the average price target, which comes in at $42.93, implies shares could decline by nearly 13% from current levels. (See NIO stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

  • Why Gold Could Be Heading To $5000

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  • Josh Brown Predicts Year-End Market Melt-Up, Bets On Reopening Stocks

    Josh Brown -- CNBC contributor, CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management and author of the new book "How I Invest My Money" -- joined Benzinga's PreMarket Prep show Friday.Brown discussed his outlook for stocks in the coming months and potential economic recovery plays in anticipation of coronavirus vaccines hitting the market.Brown's Economic Recovery Plays: Brown said he is bullish on stock prices between now and year's end, predicting a melt-up in the S&P 500 in coming weeks."I hate saying it out loud because if it doesn't happen ... you know. But I'm starting to think that way," he said.Brown owns reopening stocks like Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Simon Property Group Inc (NYSE: SPG)."I'm in some companies that really need there to be a reopening to get back to their 2019 numbers, and it might take them two years to do it," Brown said.For now, Brown said he's positioning in anticipation of how people will feel when they start hearing about friends and family members getting the coronavirus vaccine in coming months.Gap Growth Story: Brown is bullish on another economic recovery stock, Gap Inc (NYSE: GPS)."Years and years and years and years with no progress, no momentum. Nothing good to talk about in the story. You've got this fundamental change now -- them getting better at omnichannel, them getting better at the app, them improving the quality of the clothing and taking on Lululemon," he said."This could become a growth stock and it's selling at 0.5x sales, so you don't even have to pay up for the privilege of making that bet."'Taking An L' On Slack: Like any investor, Brown's track record is far from perfect. He acknowledge taking a loss on Slack Technologies Inc (NYSE: WORK) earlier this year."I think one of the things I didn't count on was how much pressure Microsoft was going to be putting on Slack, almost as though they timed that pressure for the company's IPO," Brown said.Slack's choice to go public via a direct listing meant that, unlike companies that list traditionally, Slack was immediately exposed to insider selling pressure -- and did not have the support of big bank IPO underwriters like Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), he said. "I didn't count on those two things, and it escaped me how important they might be." Watch to the full interview with Josh Brown in the clip below, or listen to the podcast here.PreMarket Prep is a daily trading show hosted by prop trader Dennis Dick and former floor trader Joel Elconin. You can watch PreMarket Prep live every day from 8-9 a.m. ET Benzinga's YouTube channel, and the podcast is on Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Soundcloud, Stitcher and Tunein.Latest Ratings for GPS DateFirmActionFromTo Nov 2020Morgan StanleyMaintainsEqual-Weight Oct 2020Morgan StanleyMaintainsEqual-Weight Oct 2020MKM PartnersMaintainsNeutral View More Analyst Ratings for GPS View the Latest Analyst RatingsSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Tesla Short Sellers Have Taken A B Hit This Week * 5 Warren Buffett Stocks To Buy For Under (C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.