New York (CNN Business)<\/cite>Oil prices began 2021 just under $50 a barrel. They are now trading just north of $70 and in October reached $85 -\u2014 a seven-year high. So it should come as no surprise that energy stocks are among the market’s biggest winners this year.<\/p>\n

Oil and natural gas exploration company Devon Energy<\/span> (DVN<\/span>)<\/span> is the best performing stock in the S&P 500 through December 13, with a nearly 180% gain.
\nMarathon Petroleum<\/span> (MPC<\/span>)<\/span> and Diamondback Energy<\/span> (FANG<\/span>)<\/span>, are up more than 100%. APA<\/span> (APA<\/span>)<\/span>, the parent company of oil giant Apache, and ConocoPhillips<\/span> (COP<\/span>)<\/span>, have nearly doubled as well.<\/p>\n

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As long as crude prices remain in the $60-to-$80-a-barrel range, oil stocks should continue to be solid performers in 2022 as well, said Anastasia Amoroso, chief investment strategist with iCapital Network.<\/p>\n

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\nBut oil and gas firms aren’t the only ones that thrived in 2021. Other big winners included Bath & Body Works, which is up 145% this year after spinning off Victoria’s Secret.<\/p>\n

Covid-19 vaccine maker Moderna<\/span> (MRNA<\/span>)<\/span>, Ford<\/span> (F<\/span>)<\/span> and chip giant Nvidia<\/span> (NVDA<\/span>)<\/span> have all more than doubled in 2021, too.
\nAs for the losers, let’s just say that investors didn’t have much patience for games of chance — or video games.<\/p>\n

Betting on gambling and video games has been a big bust<\/h3>\n

Casino owner and sports betting company Penn National Gaming<\/span> (PENN<\/span>)<\/span>, which owns a big chunk of Dave Portnoy’s Barstool, is the worst S&P 500 stock this year. It lost nearly half its value in 2021. Las Vegas Sands<\/span> (LVS<\/span>)<\/span> and Wynn Resorts<\/span> (WYNN<\/span>)<\/span> were also market laggards, falling 37% and 22% this year.
\nTraders also shunned software companies that make popular games for PCs and consoles. “Call of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard<\/span> (ATVI<\/span>)<\/span>, whose CEO Bobby Kotick has come under fire due to a sexual discrimination and harassment scandal at the company, has plunged more than 35%
\nBut the problems for video games go beyond Activision Blizzard’s scandal. Well-publicized shortages of new consoles from Sony<\/span> (SNE<\/span>)<\/span> and Microsoft<\/span> (MSFT<\/span>)<\/span> have hurt the broader video game sector, too.
\nTake-Two Interactive’s<\/span> (TTWO<\/span>)<\/span> shares have fallen more than 20% while Electronic Arts<\/span> (EA<\/span>)<\/span> is down nearly 15%. (The console supply concerns haven’t stopped meme stock GameStop<\/span> (GME<\/span>)<\/span> this year, though.)
\n<\/p>\n

Intense streaming competition is putting Big Media companies’ growth into question. That’s hurting CNN parent company AT&T, which is down more than 20% this year.
\nAT&T<\/span> (T<\/span>)<\/span> has announced plans to combine its WarnerMedia unit with Discovery<\/span> (DISCA<\/span>)<\/span> (which is also down 20% this year) to create a new media giant to be called Warner Bros. Discovery.
\nShares of ViacomCBS<\/span> (VIAC<\/span>)<\/span>, Disney<\/span> (DIS<\/span>)<\/span> and Verizon<\/span> (VZ<\/span>)<\/span> are all in the red for 2021 as well, for reasons ranging from more competition to a lack of investor enthusiasm for dividend stocks relative to bonds.
\nInvestors also soured on some of the pandemic winners from 2020. Shares of Clorox<\/span> (CLX<\/span>)<\/span> fell more than 15%, making it among the worst stocks in the S&P 500 for 2021. <\/p>\n

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The stocks of several pandemic beneficiaries not in the S&P 500, most notably Zoom Video<\/span> (ZM<\/span>)<\/span>, Roku<\/span> (ROKU<\/span>)<\/span> and Peloton<\/span> (PTON<\/span>)<\/span>, have plunged this year as well.
\nDespite recent worries about the rapidly spreading Omicron variant of Covid-19, investors are betting that the economy may return to normal and more people will go back to work and resume leisure activities thanks to vaccines.
\nSource: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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