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3 Great Stocks To Buy On A Dip Before The End Of The Year

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It's been an excellent year for the market, with the S&P 500 up nearly 27% on the year at the time of writing. Unfortunately, it hasn't been such a great year for investors in copper miner Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) (up 1% on the year), contract logistics company GXO Logistics (NYSE: GXO) (down 19%), and advanced composites manufacturer Hexcel (NYSE: HXL) (down 14%).

However, in each case, the underperformance comes down to temporary factors that should be resolved by 2025, and there's significant potential for all three to outperform going forward.

Freeport-McMoRan: A new reality will set in

The price of copper is actually up in 2024. After starting the year at about $3.85 per pound, it rose sharply to above $5 per pound in the spring, only to decline to about $4.25 at the time of writing. However, the long-term case for copper and, in turn, Freeport-McMoRan, took a hit due to a reset of expectations for the long-term growth of electric vehicles (EVs) and the pace of the clean energy transition.

The key to the long-term demand case for copper rests on its use in EVs (which use multiple more pounds of copper than internal combustion engines) and its importance to the clean energy transition (renewable energy and the networks needed to connect them to the grid, EV charging networks, storage capacity, etc.).

Unfortunately, those arguments were set back somewhat this year as relatively high interest rates curtailed sales and investment in EVs. Meanwhile, renewable energy's growing cost and complexity have lowered expectations for its growth in the coming years. That said, the clean energy transition is still taking place, and a lower interest rate environment should stimulate the broader economy and traditional sources of copper demand.

Image source: Getty Images.

In addition, Freeport-McMoRan has an exciting leaching initiative in place, which will lead to a cost-efficient ramp-up in production in the coming years. That's a significant plus, given the usual cost and difficulty in producing new copper mines. As such, Freeport-McMoRan has plenty of upside potential in the coming years.

GXO Logistics: The dip is a buying opportunity

GXO Logistics is a contract logistics provider specializing in designing and operating e-commerce warehouse facilities for companies looking to outsource the function to focus on their core activity.

Its long-term growth prospects are excellent. It is driven by an opportunity to follow existing customers into new locations as they expand internationally and win new customers looking to outsource an increasingly complex function to GXO's expertise. In addition, the growing adoption of technology (robotics, automation, smart warehouses, etc.) is amplifying the value added by GXO to its customers because implementing these technologies requires significant know-how.

The long-term picture is excellent, and the decline in the share price in 2024 is due to two temporary factors. First, the bottoming in the e-commerce warehousing market has taken longer than expected, not least because interest rates stayed higher longer than many expected this year. Second, after being subject to takeover speculation, the company has now, according to reports, decided to remain independent. The news caused a slew of speculative investors to sell the stock.

An investor at a desk.

Image source: Getty Images.

However, both issues won't last. With the speculative fervor now out of the stock , investors can focus on the company's recovering end markets. Indeed, CEO Malcolm Wilson told investors on a recent earnings call, "We're seeing inventory levels returning to normal, and demand for e-commerce capacity is accelerating." The stock is nicely set up for a recovery in 2025 as the trend toward an ever larger share of retail spending coming from e-commerce continues apace.

Hexcel: A question of when, not if

A maker of advanced composites used primarily in aerospace, defense, and general industrial applications, Hexcel's stock price decline boils down to one thing: Its two key customers, Airbus and its subcontractors (39% of 2023 revenue) and Boeing and its subcontractors (15% of 2023 revenue), have both lowered expectations for airplane deliveries this year.

It's doubly disappointing because Hexcel was gearing up for an expansion in airplane production, and the subsequent disappointment hit its margin performance and sales.

That said, Boeing and Airbus continue to win orders and have multiyear backlogs. In addition, there's no change to the longer-term outlook for Hexcel as composites are set to make up an increasing part of the value of an airplane. Advanced carbon composites provide weight and strength advantages over traditional materials like aluminum. Consequently, they make airplanes more productive, and the efficiency gains help reduce emissions.

Ultimately, Boeing and Airbus will do everything they can to ramp up production, and that will drop down into the bottom line for Hexcel.

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Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends GXO Logistics and Hexcel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.


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