ASX 200 stocks hitting fresh 52-week highs and lows – Week 32

Welcome back to the 52-week Series – A recap of ASX 200 stocks that have tagged a fresh yearly highs and lows in the past week.

52-Week Highs and Lows by Sector

• Materials: 2 Highs, 10 Lows

• Discretionary: 0 Highs, 5 Lows

• Energy: 0 Highs, 4 Lows

• Industrials: 0 Highs, 2 Lows

• Real Estate: 0 Highs, 1 Low

• Technology: 1 High, 1 Low

• Health Care: 2 High, 1 Low

• Financials: 1 High, 0 Lows

• Telecos: 1 High, 0 Lows

• Staples and Utilities recorded 0 Highs and 0 Lows

Why do 52-Week Highs and Lows Matter

Here are some of the key points our first 52-Week article:

• A research thesis by Thomas J. George and Chuan-Yang Hwang titled The 52-Week High and Momentum Investing concludes that stocks nearing their 52-week high tend to outperform in the future, surpassing the predictive power of past returns.

• US trader Mark Minervini also notes that “when you see a growing number of names in a particular industry making new 52-week highs (especially coming off a market low), this could be an indication that a group advance is underway.”

• 1851 Capital Chief Investment Officer Chris Stott says the numbers are useful in helping to determine which stocks have the momentum to keep making fresh highs. The data is used to identify continuous winners and generate fresh ideas.

What Does the Data Tell Us

• Market pullback: The ASX 200 experienced a 2.0% decline last week, influenced by a sharp Japanese market selloff and growing recession fears. Market sentiment notably shifted, with the number of stocks reaching highs dropping from 43 to 7, while those hitting lows increased from 12 to 24 between the weeks ending August 2 and August 9.

• Discretionary weakness: Gambling, fast food, and automotive stocks, including Tabcorp, Domino's, Collins Foods, and Eagers Automotive, have faced significant challenges, with an average 32% decline over the past year.

• Energy stocks fall in growth concerns: Energy stocks also suffered as Brent crude hit a year-to-date low of US$75 per barrel last Tuesday. This drop was primarily attributed to disappointing US manufacturing and unemployment data, exacerbated by the Japanese market turmoil. Amid these concerns, Goldman Sachs raised its 12-month US recession probability from 15% to 25%.

• Deep resource pain: The Materials sector faced severe pressure, with major players like BHP, Fortescue, MinRes, and Arcadium Lithium approaching yearly lows. The broader commodities market, as measured by the Bloomberg Commodity Index, has fallen 10% over the past year, reaching levels not seen since August 2021. “Commodity futures speculators are short for good reason,” said Mike McGlone, a Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist, cited rising supplies of energy and agricultural commodities, declining China demand and a stronger dollar as “solid price headwinds.”

ASX 200 Stocks at 52-Week Highs

Data shows any stock to have hit a 52-week high in the past week, sorted by Sector and 1-year performance. Share price and performance as at Friday, 9 August close

ASX 200 Discretionary at 52-Week Lows

Data shows any stock to have hit a 52-week high in the past week. Share price and performance as at Friday, 9 August close

ASX 200 Energy at 52-Week Lows

Data shows any stock to have hit a 52-week high in the past week. Share price and performance as at Friday, 9 August close

ASX 200 Materials at 52-Week Lows

Data shows any stock to have hit a 52-week high in the past week. Share price and performance as at Friday, 9 August close

Everything Else at 52-Week Lows

Data shows any stock to have hit a 52-week high in the past week. Share price and performance as at Friday, 9 August close