BofA Securities selected the 20 “most important stocks” in Asia from the MSCI Asia Pacific Index constituent stocks. Analysts wrote in a May 10 note that each stock’s importance is determined by “multiplying the index weight and the extent to which the stock performs differently from the same index (relative returns over the past decade versus the MSCI Asia Pacific index volatility). notes. These stocks have a market capitalization of at least $20 billion and average daily trading volume of at least $20 million. Backtesting shows that the top stocks listed by the investment bank “have outperformed in 16 of the past 29 calendar years, and they have tended to outperform in rising markets.” Bank of America analysts said: “In recent years Coming in, they significantly outperformed the market in 2019-2020, but significantly underperformed in 2021-2022. Here are the stocks investors need to get right, according to FactSet consensus price targets. The investment bank’s list of 10 stocks that stand out for having huge upside potential. Among the popular stocks appearing on the bank’s screens was Hong Kong life insurance company AIA Group. All 30 analysts covering the stock are bullish on the stock, with a “buy” or “overweight” rating and a price target of HK$89.72 ($11.50). This gives the stock an upside potential of 42.0%. South Korean tech giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix also appear on the screen. Of the 41 analysts covering Samsung Electronics, 36 have given it an overweight or buy rating. Analysts have a price target of 103,211 won ($76.61) for the stock, representing a potential upside of 32.0%, according to FactSet data. 35 of the 39 analysts covering SK Hynix have buy or overweight ratings on the stock. Their average price target is 233,378 won, implying an upside potential of nearly 20.9%, according to FactSet data. —CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
