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In an era of fake news, it’s getting more difficult to separate fact from fiction. Yet it’s imperative we do so because the consequences for being deceived can be enormous.
Which stocks are benefiting from fast money?
It seems retail investors are parachuting out of airline stocks and refusing to take their meds by dumping pharmaceutical stocks amid a second-quarter global share market rout. Well, that’s according to data from share trading platform eToro.
The platform was able to show which global companies recorded the biggest increase and decrease in shareholders on its platform during Q2. Here are the top and bottom ten companies:
| Rank | Company | Category | Increase QoQ | Company | Category | Decrease QoQ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Social Media | 137% | Merck & Co. | Pharmaceutical | -19% | |
| 2 | ZIM Shipping Services Ltd | Shipping | 66% | TAL Education Group ADR | Education | -12% |
| 3 | Hewlett Packard | Technology Co | 53% | Pinduoduo Inc | E-Commerce | -11% |
| 4 | Ubisoft Entertainment SA | Video games | 49% | Enphase Energy Inc. | Solar PV | -8% |
| 5 | Shell PLC | Oil and gas | 43% | United Airlines Holdings Inc | Airlines | -8% |
| 6 | Target Corp | Retailer | 43% | Electronic Arts, Inc. | Video games | -8% |
| 7 | Occidental Petroleum Corp | Oil and gas | 40% | Delta Air Lines Inc (DE) | Airlines | -7% |
| 8 | BP | Oil and gas | 39% | IBM | Technology Co | -7% |
| 9 | SAP SE | Software | 38% | Pfizer | Pharmaceutical | -6% |
| 10 | Farfetch | Luxury retailer | 35% | Alteryx Inc. | Computer software | -6% |
On the flip side, retail investors were jumping on board with Elon Musk’s latest venture, Twitter. At the start of April, Musk filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the purchase of almost $3 billion in Twitter shares, giving him a 9.2% stake.
He then offered to buy the company outright and take it private for $44 billion, or $54.20 a share – 38% higher than Twitter’s 1 April close. The deal was unanimously approved by Twitter’s board but still has to be approved by regulators and shareholders.
Twitter recorded the biggest increase in eToro’s platform, up 137 percent. Other than the social media giant, investors seemed to be buying-up oil and gas companies on the back of a booming WTI oil price following sanctions on Russian exports. Shell and BP saw significant rises in stock demand amid the global rise in gas and oil prices. The percentage of investors holding these stocks rose 43 per cent and 39 per cent respectively, while Occidental Petroleum Corp saw a 40 per cent rise in holders.
According to eToro, investors were actively dumping airline stocks, having run out of patience for a recovery rally. United Airlines Holdings (-8 per cent), Delta Air Lines (-7 per cent) and American Airlines Group (-6 per cent) were all in the top ten fallers, along with several pharmaceutical giants. These included US firm Merck & Co, first on the list (-19 per cent), Pfizer (-6 per cent) and Bayer AG (-6 per cent).
Companies that had the largest increase in Australian holders ranged from Twitter (197 per cent), Ubisoft Entertainment (90 per cent), Unilever (81 per cent), BP (80 per cent), and Shell (73 per cent).
eToro said in an announcement this week, “Australian investors are also increasingly adding defence assets to their portfolio, from consumer staples in Unilever, to healthcare in AstraZeneca. Investors down under are staying confident for the eventual upturn in markets as we can see from the consistency of the top ten most-held assets, but are adding defensive stocks to their portfolio to help to better manage risk.”
In Australia, the top 10 most held stocks among eToro investors encompassed Tesla, Apple, Nio, Amazon, Meta Platforms, GameStop, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Alphabet and Alibaba.
