Contrarian investors can still generate extra returns ( alpha ) even in the current bull market, according to Mizuho Securities. Stocks have been roaring to new heights lately, with all three major indexes notching fresh records in May. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above the 40,000 level while the Nasdaq Composite topped 17,000. But investors who prefer to swim against the tide can still find opportunities in stocks that have fallen out of favor with Wall Street analysts, according to Mizuho. In a recent note, Mizuho shared a screen of top stock picks where its analysts’ price targets are 10% or more above the average analyst consensus. Of those seven stocks, Mizuho said its investment rating on Lowe’s and PayPal were also above the Street consensus. Shares of home improvement retailer Lowe’s have slipped 2% so far this year. Mizuho analyst David Bellinger’s $280 price target implies that the stock could rally 29% from its Monday closing price. “We view Lowe’s as decisively well-positioned as home improvement demand recovers and unleashes outsized, double-digit earnings expansion in the process,” the analyst wrote. Meanwhile, Mizuho named Lowe’s a top pick, given its expectations for same-store sales to turn positive by the end of the year, as well as the company’s exposure to the do-it-yourself part of the market. Additionally, Lowe’s is currently trading at a discount both compared to the broader market and to competitor Home Depot, Bellinger wrote. Similarly, financial technology platform PayPal has risen only about 4% this year, leaving its valuation “compelling” at current prices, according to Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev. PayPal is currently trading below its historical spread versus peers, and Dolev believes the stock should rise to sell at a “modest premium” due to upcoming opportunities such as its Fastlane service. “Our proprietary analysis of PYPL’s newly-introduced guest checkout solution – Fastlane – shows potential for a $1.0-1.5 billion transaction margin dollar (key debate) lift over the medium-term given the $1.43 trillion of annual e-comm spend that we believe is addressable by Fastlane,” Dolev wrote. Dolev’s $90 price target is 42% above the stock’s current price. Another company on Mizuho’s list was database management provider Oracle. Oracle has risen 14% this year, lagging behind other large-cap tech names such as Nvidia and Amazon, but analyst Siti Panigrahi’s $160 price target implies that the stock could rally another 34%. As a catalyst, the analyst pointed to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), the company’s cloud computing service. “We believe many investors continue to under-appreciate the attractiveness of Oracle’s OCI offering both from a price and performance perspective (ORCL is ~33% cheaper than AWS for basic compute services),” Panigrahi wrote. In fact, Oracle looks well-positioned to grow its cloud business due to its under-penetration in the industry, the analyst argued. Panigrahi added that he is confident in Oracle’s ability to expand its operating margins to 45% by 2026. CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
