Many small-cap stocks have limited Wall Street coverage, giving savvy investors the chance to act before everyone else catches on. But the flip side is that these businesses have increased downside risk because they lack the scale and staying power of their larger competitors.
The Russell 2000 is home to many small-cap stocks, offering investors the chance to uncover hidden gems before the broader market catches on. However, these companies often come with higher volatility and risk, as their smaller size makes them more vulnerable to economic downturns.
Healthcare companies are pushing the status quo by innovating in areas like drug development and digital health. Despite the rosy long-term prospects, short-term headwinds such as COVID inventory destocking have harmed the industry’s returns - over the past six months, healthcare stocks have collectively shed 9.5%. This drop was worse than the S&P 500’s 2.3% loss.
Business services providers use their specialized expertise to help enterprises streamline operations and cut costs. But increasing competition from AI-driven upstarts has tempered enthusiasm, and over the past six months, the industry has pulled back by 3.7%. This performance was similar to the S&P 500’s decline.
Restaurants increase convenience and give many people a place to unwind. Still, their demand can ebb and flow with the broader economy because consumers can always cook meals at home when times are tough, and the market seems to be baking in a downturn for the industry - over the past six months, it has pulled back by 6.6%. This performance was worse than the S&P 500’s 2.3% fall.
Cloud-based financial software provider nCino's stock tumbled more than 30% in premarket trading Wednesday, a day after the company reported a larger net loss than analysts had expected and issued a soft outlook.
News of the day for April 2, 2025
Circle, the company behind the USDC stablecoin, has filed for a U.S. initial public offering, becoming the the latest tech firm that is aiming to test the market as tariff uncertainty and worries about the economy’s health weigh on investors.
Wall Street's main indexes fell on Wednesday as investors worried about the potential impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs on the global economy, corporate earnings and inflation. Details of Trump's "Liberation Day" tariff plans were still being formulated and closely held ahead of a White House Rose Garden announcement ceremony scheduled for 4 p.m. ET (2000 GMT). Trump has said that his reciprocal tariffs aim to equalize the comparatively lower U.S. tariff rates with those imposed by other nations.
Looking for the best money market account interest rates available today? Here’s a look at where to find the highest rates and whether now is a good time to open a money market account.