The 10 S&P Stocks That Dropped Have 40% or More This Year

Investing

Published: November 1, 2018 1:25 pm

Last Updated: January 11, 2020 3:30 pm

It has been a wild ride for stocks the past several months. However, when all is said and done, the S&P 500 is up 1.4% in 2018 through the end of October to 2,711. Some famous stocks, like Facecbook, have fallen into the correction category. It is down 14% to $153. The worst performing S&P stocks are off much more than that. The following 10 are off more than 40% this year.

1. The first among these is savaged General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE). It has changed chief executives. Larry Culp took the job a month ago from GE veteran John Flannery. The 125-year-old company, which was once the greatest conglomerate in the world, is auditioning divisions and cutting costs, and it recently slashed its precious dividend to a penny to save money. Culp has suggested layoffs, and the sell-offs are not over until GE is down to two or three core divisions. Its stock is off 42% this year to below $10.

2. The stock price of gambling company Wynn Resort Ltd. (NYSE: WYNN) was down 42% to $100 as of month’s end. It has been plagued by sexual harassment claims against its departed CEO and founder, Steve Wynn. There are semi-regular battles between his ex-wife, who has considerable holdings, and the balance of the board, some of whom have been ousted. In its most recent quarter, it missed estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

2. Shares of EQT Corp. (NYSE: EQT) are down 42% to less than $35. The prospects of the energy company have been hurt by lower oil and gas prices. It has tried to mitigate this via sales of some of its natural gas assets to Peoples Natural Gas. EQT has not only down so much this year, but the stock dropped to an eight-year low on October 18 after America’s largest natural gas company earnings missed expectations. The company recently appointed new directors and may break itself in half.

4. Affiliated Managers Group Inc. (NYSE: AMG) shares are down 44% so far this year to under $115. The company is an asset manager and mutual fund company. It serves both individual and institutional investors and has $824 billion assets under management. While the company beat earnings estimates in the most recent quarter, costs rose more than expected. Investors worry choppy markets could hurt its numbers this quarter, particularly in funds that hold big cap tech shares. It is also in a highly competitive market against giants like Fidelity and Vanguard.

5. L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LB) shares are down 46% so far this year to $32 or so. It is the parent of two major retailers, Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works. To turn itself around, it may dump luxury lingerie brand La Senza. It also will close its 26 Henri Bendel stores. Victoria’s Secret is a much larger problem. Its same-store sales were up only 1% in September. Its Pink brand, an inexpensive part of the Victory’s Secret product line, has done very poorly. The bright part of the brand lineup is Bath & Body Works. Its same-store sales were up 10% in the second quarter. However, net income for that quarter dropped from $139 million to $99 million.

6. Dentsply Sirona Inc.’s (NASDAQ: XRAY) stock is down 47% from January through October to $35. The company makes dental supplies in several categories, including implants, imaging systems and treatment centers. Including its predecessor company, it is over 100 years old. The primary cause for the battering is the outlook the company posted when it issued second-quarter earnings. While revenue for the period rose 5% to $1.04 billion, the net loss the company posted was $1.12 billion. The final problem Dentsply Sirona faces is that Moody’s cut its outlook on the company’s Baa2 senior unsecured rating and Prime-2 commercial paper rating to negative.