Our latest list of the best stocks to buy now includes five energy, tech, pharma, and - believe it or not - retail standouts...
Bricks-and-mortar retail is dying a slow, painful death. A record 5,000 U.S. stores are expected to close in 2017, according to real estate research firm Cushman & Wakefield.
A segment on FOX Business in March called it a "retail ice age." But Shah Gilani calls it an extinction event. "Retailers can't close stores fast enough," he writes, "though they're trying."
As far as retail is concerned, online shopping is where it's at. That's why two of our five best stocks to buy right now are online retail juggernauts. This is a sector that's set to soar while bricks-and-mortar stores crash and burn.
Elsewhere, we highlight a potential leader in the booming marijuana industry, a pharmaceuticals sleeper that could have a blockbuster drug in its pipeline, and an energy powerhouse poised to benefit from continued growth in China.
Take a look at five of our featured best stocks to buy in May...
Our first choice is a giant that everyone knows. We bring it up to stress that, as high as the share price is, it's still a good buy.
In fact, Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald writes that this is perhaps the one stock that you can "buy today and expect to hold for the rest of your investing lifetime."
The top stock he's talking about is Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN).
After conquering media sales, e-commerce is spreading to every corner of the retail sector. Customers are increasingly going online to buy not just books and music, but also furniture, appliances, and clothing.
Even supposedly "Amazon-proof" sectors like groceries and home improvement need to watch their backs, Keith says. "Any retailer without an Amazon defense strategy is living on borrowed time."
And what that means for investors is, as he puts it, "Longer term, there's no question you want to own shares of Amazon."
Here's Keith's full analysis on why AMZN is a good stock to buy now (and why the $900-plus per share price tag shouldn't scare you away)...
Amazon may dominate online retail in the United States, but the biggest e-commerce market in the world is China. China represents almost half of all online sales in the world, even though only half the population is online.
That leaves plenty of room for growth. Annual online sales in China are already close to $1 trillion and are projected to reach almost $2.5 billion by 2020.
"Like it or not, China will be the single most important economy of the 21st century," Keith writes. "It's not something you should walk away from but, rather, look to invest in."
China is buying more and more, and will keep buying more. "Of everything," Keith says. And the biggest beneficiary of all that buying is China's version of Amazon, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA).
Alibaba commands about 80% of the Chinese e-commerce market (which, as we've already mentioned, is huge) and has been successfully expanding into other sectors as well.
Here Keith shows us just how much China's staggering growth can translate into profits for Alibaba investors...
The noncriminal marijuana industry is experiencing a gold rush. Legal cannabis sales in North America hit $6.7 billion in 2016, up 30% from 2015 and 46% from 2014. And this is an industry that has barely hit its stride.
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Three states approved measures legalizing marijuana for recreational use in November, and three more legalized it for medical purposes.
While Attorney General Jeff Sessions has talked tough about enforcing the federal ban, Congress so far has been unwilling to cooperate with him. President Trump has consistently said he prefers leaving it to the states.
With the market expanding rapidly, Arcview Market Research projects legal marijuana sales to reach $20.2 billion by 2021.
Pot Profits: Forget Jeff Sessions! These Five Canadian Pot Stocks Are Set to Skyrocket. Click Here...
As Money Morning Director of Technology & Venture Capital Research Michael Robinson points out, legal weed doesn't have much brand recognition. There's no Coca-Cola, Apple, or even Mitsubishi of marijuana.
But one of the leading candidates he likes now is Cannabis Sativa Inc. (OTCMKTS: CBDS). This Nevada-based company makes a variety of cannabis products including balms, sprays, mints, and edibles.
With a wide range of products and a chain of retail stores on the way, Cannabis Sativa is in a perfect position to become a national brand. As sales soar, that could mean huge returns for shareholders.
Find out why Cannabis Sativa's patented strain of marijuana and its popular social media app make this one of Michael Robinson's favorite pot stocks.
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Imagine getting in on a drug company just before it releases a groundbreaking new drug.
Here's what kind of money we're talking about: The top-selling drug in 2016 generated over $16 billion in revenue, and the top five raked in a combined $50 billion.
But by the time a drug reaches the top-seller list, it may be too late for investors. The real profits to be made in pharmaceuticals come from getting in while that blockbuster drug is still in the pipeline.
This means speculation. We can't know for sure which drugs are going to take off, but we can put the odds in our favor by looking what drugs a company has lined up.
Sanofi SA (NYSE: SNY), the No. 5 drug maker in the world, has a lineup of upcoming drugs that Michael Robinson says could be big sellers. One drug set to be released in the next few months is expected to hit $3 billion in annual sales by 2020. And Sanofi has another 13 drugs in phase 3 trials.
That puts the company in prime position to release a potential blockbuster in the next few years.
The drugs in Sanofi's pipeline aren't the only reason we like this stock's profit potential. Get the full bullish story from Michael Robinson here.
The U.S. energy industry remains unstable. Oil is in the mid-$40s as of early May, which makes it nearly impossible for U.S. oil drillers to stay afloat.
As ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance has put it, "Forty-dollar to fifty-dollar oil prices don't work in this business." That's why Money Morning Global Energy Strategist Dr. Kent Moors says we can expect a round of bankruptcies and consolidations in the near future.
If you want consistency, though, look to China, where energy demand is rising steadily. China is the major driver of demand growth in the world, and that makes it an important market for investment in the energy sector.
This puts China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (NYSE: SNP), also known as Sinopec Ltd., in an ideal position...
Sinopec is the largest refiner and oil product distributor in Asia. It's favored by the Chinese government, which has been making large investments in energy infrastructure throughout the country. Sinopec is in the perfect spot to benefit from China's growing demand.
Kent Moors has put Sinopec back in his portfolio. Here he tells us why, plus gives us two key numbers that make Sinopec a buy today...
Up Next: One gallon of this new "crystal fuel" could get you from New York to L.A. and back... seven times! Being hailed by many experts as energy's "Holy Grail," it's 1,693 times more powerful than the gasoline that runs your car. The mainstream investment media isn't even talking about it yet. Read more...
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