With the start of the third quarter approaching, where are analysts most optimistic and pessimistic in terms of their ratings on stocks in the S&P 500?
Overall, there are 12,319 ratings on stocks in the S&P 500. Of these ratings, 56.4% are Buy ratings, 38.7% are Hold ratings, and 4.9% are Sell ratings. The percentage of Buy ratings is above its 5-year (month-end) average of 55.1%. The percentage Hold ratings is below its 5-year (month-end) average of 39.0%. The percentage of Sell ratings is also below its 5-year (month-end) average of 5.9%.
At the sector level, analysts are most optimistic on the Energy (68%), Communication Services (64%), and Information Technology (64%) sectors, as these three sectors have the highest percentages of Buy ratings. On the other hand, analysts are most pessimistic on the Consumer Staples (40%) sector, as this sector has the lowest percentage of Buy ratings. The Consumer Staples (53%) sector also has the highest percentage of Hold ratings, while the Consumer Staples (7%) and Utilities (7%) sectors have the highest percentages of Sell ratings.
The ten S&P 500 companies with the highest percentages of Buy ratings and Sell ratings (with a minimum of 3 ratings) can be found below. Two of the top ten companies with the highest percentage of Buy ratings are also “Magnificent 7” companies: Amazon.com and Microsoft.
After falling to 53.6% at the end of October 2024, the percentage of Buy ratings for the S&P 500 has increased to 56.4% today. If 56.4% is the final percentage of Buy ratings for the month of June, it will mark the second-highest (month-end) percentage of Buy ratings for the index since June 2022 (56.9%).
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