We live in a world where the time gap and attention span between “the next big thing” and “what’s next already?” is historically short.
So what should investors, who have now seen SpaceX (SPCX) stock finally start trading but have months until historic debuts from OpenAI and Anthropic occur, use to fill the “YOLO” void?
More Yield, Less Trap: Sign up free to get Barchart’s daily Dividend Investor newsletter straight to your inbox.
I decided to run a simple but potentially effective stock screen on Barchart.com to see if I could unearth something out of left field. I took a different approach, focusing on stocks in the S&P 500 Index ($SPX) which have lost at least 25% during the past 50 trading days.
What You Should Be Doing Right Now
The financial headlines right now are entirely monopolized by anticipation.
Retail investors are pacing back and forth, completely transfixed by the upcoming multi-hundred-billion-dollar tech listings from OpenAI and Anthropic, likely months away.
Who knows what market conditions will be by then, and what factors will be driving them? In terms of narrative, it is anyone’s guess. But there is one thing that ultimately determines stock prices. Supply and demand for shares! We just saw it on full display with the SpaceX IPO. But that’s just an exaggerated version of what plays out across the entire stock market, every day. It is why I’m a chartist first, and everything else second.
Sitting on your hands waiting for the next mega-cap hype cycle to hit the casino floor is a dangerous psychological trap. Idle time breeds boredom, and in the modern gamified market, a bored investor is highly prone to chasing parabolic tech charts or entering messy, high-beta derivative trades just to lease a temporary rush of adrenaline.
It doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, as I often tell my subscribers, “boring investing can be exciting.” If it produces more consistent, positive results. Or as they say in sports, winning is contagious.
www.barchart.com This specific stock screen is engineered to find deeply discounted quality names, with the added feature of not being within 30 days of an earnings report. So that won’t get in the way.
As you see here, the screening factors were simple, just a trio. S&P 500 member, 50 day percent change of more than or at least a 25% LOSS. That is, a return of -25% or worse. I’m looking for large-cap companies that have endured a severe, sudden, multi-week washout, clearing out the momentum chasers and weak-handed retail HODLers. And by limiting my universe strictly to the S&P 500, we automatically build a quality floor.
That earnings filter is the kicker. I am searching for companies that have been thoroughly beaten down ahead of their quarterly earnings announcement. When a major S&P 500 stock drops more than 25% in two months, at a time when the headline indexes are appreciating, the market is pricing in some degree of catastrophe.
This sets up an asymmetric, low-expectations hurdle where even slightly mediocre news can stoke a recovery. If this sounds like a screen anyone can use to create their own spin on my colleague Jim Van Meerten’s Chart of the Day, it is. All you need is a thought process and Barchart’s simple-to-use stock research tools, including the screener.
www.barchart.com Now let’s look at the seven lucky stocks that made the cut, and chart them to see if any of them are worth considering. “Lucky” is a term that applies to someone screening to identify it. I don’t think holders feel too lucky right now.
Tractor Supply Company (TSCO): Tractor Supply (TSCO) has hit a clear pricing wall as working-class consumer discretionary trends soften. The Healthcare Trio (BSX, PODD, ZTS): Boston Scientific (BSX), Insulet (PODD), and Zoetis (ZTS) have all been caught in an aggressive sector distribution wave. Or as non-technicians would call it, a healthcare sector selloff. This reminds us that often, stocks are guilty by association with their sector or industry. When semiconductor stocks fly or dive, there’s a good chance they do so in sync. That’s no different from most market segments. The Tech and Telco “Nerds” Club (CHTR, INTU, LDOS): Charter Communications (CHTR), Intuit (INTU), and Leidos Holdings (LDOS) represent stocks which have been through an air pocket, likely due to algorithmic-driven selling. Part of this is the so-called SaaSpocalypse, in which legacy software stocks are assumed to be on the outs with the ascension of AI.How Do the Charts of These 7 Stocks Look Right Now?
In a word: mixed. In two words: VERY mixed. So I’ll show you a couple that look most interesting here. And two more that look truly grotesque.
While CHTR is trying to carve out a bottom, based on its PPO indicator and the “green shoot” of a 20–day moving average that turned positive for a moment last week, I think it is safe to assume that neither Jim nor I will be highlighting this one as Chart of the Day right now. ZTS has a similar-looking chart, but slightly worse to me.
www.barchart.com When I see a chart like BSX, a once-prominent S&P 500 stock, my heart goes out to the employees who have been working there a long time and have been accumulating company stock. That stock is trading around its price from back in 2019.
www.barchart.com A cheerful bounce for INTU is barely noticeable for a stock that has plunged from $800 to under $300 in under 12 months’ time. Pass on this sector, unless it is via an option collar or cheap, way out of the money call options.
www.barchart.com My ROAR Score analysis produces what I’d expect: no good news. But since ROAR is more about monitoring the TREND instead of the “SPOT” or static score value, I will count on it providing high-percentage signals once these deep decliners show signs of more than a flippant bounce in price to consider entering.
Chart courtesy of Rob Isbitts via PiTrade.com Because this is not about the “very long run.” The markets just do not reward long-term fundamentals at this point. In fact, just the opposite. They are rewarding long-term hope and current thrill-seeking.
So to play along, I am looking for stocks with the possibility of making 10%-20% or more in a matter of weeks or months. And while this particular screener does not unearth any immediate table-pounding buys, the point is that this is a great time to be doing the work. And making a list of the stocks to come back to as the AI trade plays out and investors eventually look beyond the “now.”
If you choose to engage in this type of stock screening, be sure to apply strict portfolio hygiene: treat them with a shorter tactical orientation (anywhere from several months down to a week or two, if the latter period involves the market telling you that you were wrong, or that you were spot-on with your timing, even if it was not intentional). And be aware of the earnings calendar. Not just the date a company reports, but whether they report before or market close.
See, there’s more to investing life in 2026 than giant IPOs! If anything, I think those who look under the market’s proverbial couch cushions at times like this can be rewarded.
Rob Isbitts created the ROAR Score, based on his 40+ years of technical analysis experience. ROAR helps DIY investors manage risk and create their own portfolios. For Rob’s written research, check out ETFYourself.com.
On the date of publication, Rob Isbitts did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
More news from Barchart
If You’re Looking for the ‘Next Big Thing’ Before the OpenAI and Anthropic IPOs, Try This Barchart Stock Screener 25 ETFs Are Launching to Cash In on the SpaceX IPO Frenzy. Gamblers Could Quickly Lose It All. When the AI Trade Collapses, These 3 S&P 500 Sectors Are Your Best Bet Ignore the Financial Influencers Pushing a ‘Trifecta’ ETF Strategy. Manage Risk and Volatility with 1 of These Savvy Funds Instead.