
Key Takeaways
- Cyclical stocks are affected by macroeconomic changes, where its returns follow the cycles of an economy.
- Cyclical stocks are generally the opposite of defensive stocks. ...
- Cyclical stocks usually have higher volatility and are expected to produce higher returns during periods of economic strength.
What are considered cyclical stocks?
Cyclical stocks tend to move up and down in value ... so real estate stocks that might otherwise have been considered defensive have generally underperformed during the COVID-19 pandemic To ...
What are examples of cyclical companies?
Top Cyclical Stocks List to Watch in 2020
- Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA)
- Microvision Inc. (NASDAQ: MVIS)
- Boxlight Corporation (NASDAQ: BOXL)
- GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME)
- Nokia (NYSE: NOK)
- Penn National Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN)
- Nautilus Inc. (NYSE: NLS)
What are Cyclical sector stocks?
Health-care companies rose, but not by much, as traders rotated into more economically cyclical sectors. Pfizer and BioNTech applied for emergency-use authorization of their Covid vaccine in children between six months and five years old. Johnson & Johnson ...
What are cyclicals in the stock market?
"The equity market sell-off is overdone in our view, and we reiterate our call to buy the dip, particularly in cyclicals and small caps," said JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic in a new research ...

What are considered cyclical stocks?
Cyclical stocks represent companies that make or sell discretionary items and services that are in demand when the economy is doing well. They include restaurants, hotel chains, airlines, furniture, high-end clothing retailers, and automobile manufacturers.
What does cyclical mean in investing?
A cyclical stock is a stock that's price is affected by macroeconomic or systematic changes in the overall economy. Cyclical stocks are known for following the cycles of an economy through expansion, peak, recession, and recovery.
What is the best cyclical stock?
Cyclical stocks that are best investments for inflationary periods include The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD), Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC), among others.
What does it mean if a company is cyclical?
A cyclical stock is one whose underlying business generally follows the economic cycle of expansion and recession. Cyclical businesses perform well during economic expansions but typically experience significantly declining sales and profits during recessions and other challenging economic times.
Should you buy cyclical stocks?
Investors who can tolerate a lot of volatility and have a buy-and-hold mentality might consider buying cyclicals while the price is lower during an economic downturn—as long as the downturn isn't just getting underway.
Are Cyclical stocks risky?
The incremental price increase of goods and services in an economy is highly cyclical and can pose its own risk to investors, while also causing cyclical risks in the economy.
Is Coca-Cola a cyclical stock?
Consumer Cyclical Stocks: Coca-Cola (KO)
Are bank stocks cyclical?
Are bank stocks cyclical? The short answer is yes. Bank stocks are generally affected by recessions for a couple of reasons. First, interest rates tend to fall during recessions.
Is Costco cyclical?
Because Costco makes most of its money through recurring subscriptions its revenue stream is more similar to that of a SaaS company. But unlike a SaaS company, Costco's revenues are counter-cyclical.
What type of stocks do well in a recession?
Historically, stocks in the consumer staples, health care and utilities sectors have fared well during recessions.Consumer staples. ... Health care. ... Utilities.
Are pharma stocks cyclical?
To contrast, the pharmaceutical industry is an example of a non-cyclical industry because there is a demand for pharmaceuticals (an essential good) whether the economy is in an expansion or a downturn phase.
Are metal stocks cyclical?
As the name suggests, these are stocks that are vulnerable to the business cycles and have a multiplier demand effect of shifts in economic growth. There are quite a few sectors that are directly linked to economic growth. Cement, construction, steel, capital goods are all classic examples of cyclical stocks.
What are cyclical stocks?
Cyclical stocks are the shares of companies that change depending on the economic circumstances of a country or stages in the business cycle.
Cyclical stock examples
Cyclical stocks are classed as ‘discretionary companies’. The industries that fall into this category include examples such as:
How to identify cyclical stocks
The most common way of identifying cyclical stocks is by looking at the beta value of the stock. The beta value looks at how sensitive a share price is to changes in the broader market by comparing returns.
Cyclical vs non-cyclical stocks
While cyclical stocks are impacted by the business cyclical, non-cyclical stocks aren’t. They’re often known as defensive stocks or consumer essentials, as their performance is durable in both contractions and expansions.
Are cyclical stocks worth trading?
Cyclical stocks are a worthwhile part of any trader’s portfolio for three main reasons:
Why do cyclical stocks fall?
Cyclical stocks tend to rise and fall based upon changes in the economic cycle. Often the reaction to changes in certain economic factors is quite predictable and savvy investors will buy or sell cyclical stocks based on their estimate of changes in these economic factors. Airline stocks are a good example of a group whose stocks would be ...
Why are stocks high flyers?
The stocks of these cyclical companies can be high-flyers when the economy is doing well, unemployment is low, and businesses are generally profitable . However, when economic conditions change, these types of stocks can fall hard. Especially those companies offering luxury products or services.
What is a cyclical stock?
A cyclical stock is one whose price is impacted by economic cycles such as expansion, peak , recession and recovery. Its price, and often the underlying results of the company, are impacted by the various stages of the economic and business cycle. Cyclical stocks tend to rise and fall based upon changes in the economic cycle.
Do cyclical stocks follow the economy?
The performance of cyclical stocks will tend to follow the ups and downs of the general economy far more than that of non-cyclicals. Their price and performance can be quite volatile.
Is cyclical stock volatile?
Roger Wohlner. Shutterstock. Cyclical stocks tend to move with the economic cycle and can be quite volatile in nature. Cyclical stocks tend to move with the economic cycle and can be quite volatile in nature.
Is airline stock cyclical?
Airline stocks are a good example of a group whose stocks would be considered to be cyclical. When the economy is doing well and there is low unemployment, travel will likely be up. Businesses can afford for their employees to travel on business. Personal travel will likely be up as well, since consumers will have the money to spend on travel.
What is cyclical stock?
A cyclical stock’s definition is that it follows the market’s movement. In a recession, it does poorly. In a bull market, it does well. These stocks usually sell things that people buy in good times and not in bad times. When people are tightening their belts, cyclical stocks are the first to suffer.
Do stocks have dividends?
And the stocks often provide steady dividends. They’re usually well-established companies with big market caps. These stocks are seen as stable enough to survive bad economic conditions. Overall, these are stocks with little overall risk. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re the best for a turbulent economy.
Is volatility a trader's bread and butter?
Volatility can be a trader’s bread and butter, and the past few months have given us plenty . If you’re looking for volatility, you should pay attention to cyclical stocks. These stocks have taken the same beating that the economy went through earlier this year. Now with a market’s recovery, they could be poised for a rise.
Do construction stocks depend on the macroeconomics?
They also don’t depend on immediate turnover. Construction stocks are dependent on the same macroeconomic shifts as other cyclical stocks. But they are somewhat downstream. Residential construction projects pick up steam as interest rates go down.
Is it a good time to learn about cyclical stocks?
If cyclical stocks are part of your trading strategy, this is a good time to learn the value of adapting. A stock’s health depends on many things. A big one is its relationship to the overall market. Not all strategies work in all markets.
What Sectors Have Cyclical Stocks?
Investors can identify cyclical companies by looking for those whose products and services are more immune to economic downturns. Cyclical stocks are, to some degree, usually concentrated within certain sectors/industries.
Cyclical vs. Non-Cyclical Stocks
As previously stated, cyclical stocks differ from non-cyclical ones in how leveraged they are to the economic cycle. Cyclical stocks typically outperform during times of economic expansion, but they usually underperform when the economy displays weakness, or when investors are anticipating economic weakness.
How To Invest In Cyclical Stocks?
The process of buying cyclicals is the same as for any other stock. The easiest way to buy stocks is through an online brokerage like eToro or Robinhood. Stocks are mostly bought and sold on exchanges like the NASDAQ or New York Stock Exchange. Investors can start by creating an account with an online brokerage.
Are Cyclical Stocks Risky?
All common stock investments involve some degree of risk. Capital invested in stocks is not guaranteed. When it comes to deciding whether to buy cyclical stocks specifically, the best thing to do first is to look at where the economy is in the current cycle.
Q: What does it mean to me as an investor if a stock is "cyclical"?
Cyclical stocks are issued by companies whose businesses and stock prices tend to follow the business cycle. They generally perform very well during economic expansions but typically underperform during recessions as sales drop.
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Best cyclical stocks
When searching for the best cyclical stocks, look for companies that have a lower cost structure than peers. As the economic cycle turns for the worse, companies with low-cost operations can better cope than peers that have high operating and financial leverage.
Cyclical energy stocks
In the energy space, oil prices have tumbled in 2020. The sector also faces long-term headwinds from soaring sales of electric vehicles. The Biden administration is expected to focus on the nonrenewable energy sector. While this shift could be negative for domestic players, it may support energy prices.
Cyclical stock ETFs
There are several cyclical stock ETFs. The SPDR S&P Metals and Mining ETF invests in a basket of U.S.-based metal and mining companies, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund gives you exposure to cyclical consumer discretionary stocks. The Invesco Dynamic Leisure and Entertainment ETF could be a play on the COVID-19 vaccine.
What does "cyclical" mean in economics?
They represent goods and services that are not considered necessities but discretionary purchases. During contractions or recessions, people have less disposable income to spend on consumer cyclicals. When the economy is expanding or booming, the sales of these goods rise as retail and leisure spending increases.
What is a consumer cyclical?
Consumer cyclicals include companies that produce durable and non-durable consumer goods that are affected by changes in the business cycle. Most cyclical stocks belong to companies that sell discretionary items consumers can afford to buy more of during a booming economy, but where consumers spend less during a recession.
What are cyclical companies?
Consumer cyclical companies, also referred to as consumer discretionary companies, are particularly exposed to fluctuations in consumer spending. Consumer spending is affected by economic factors such as interest rates, inflation, unemployment and wage growth. When economic conditions begin to deteriorate, consumers are less inclined to spend their money on non-essentials, for example, flat screen televisions, vacations, new clothes, and new cars. Consumer confidence is an important gauge of consumers’ attitudes toward spending. A decline in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) often precedes a decline in consumer spending on discretionary items.
What does CCI mean in stock market?
A decline in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) often precedes a decline in consumer spending on discretionary items. When the economy starts to slow down, consumer cyclical companies experience declining sales and earnings putting pressure on their stock price.
Why do investors need a balance of stocks?
A balance of stocks from both sectors would provide greater stability over the long term. Investors can also increase stability by focusing on consumer cyclical stocks that pay dividends. Dividends can cushion the downside movement of consumer cyclical stocks.
