Cybersecurity Alert: Stocks to Help Fight the Latest Hack Attack!

This weekend saw a global hack attack that targeted more than 200,000 victims in over 150 countries. That included corporations like Renault which were forced to close down for the day, with the hackers demanding ransom in bitcoin.

Authorities aren’t certain who did the attacks. But Google (GOOGL, Rated “A-”) and three major cybersecurity firms have suggested that the code and software resembles that used in past attacks by North Korea. Those include the 2014 Sony Pictures Entertainment incident and the 2016 Federal Reserve theft of $81 million.

Cybersecurity remains a great unknown variable for the vast majority of people. We just don’t know how vulnerable we really are, even as we’re happy to provide our credit card numbers to get second-day shipping for goods from online retailers. But as investors, you can fight back. Today I want to talk about companies that you could look at a little closer in these uncertain times.

Here’s a list of our U.S.-traded, BUY- and HOLD-rated stocks in the cybersecurity space. It includes only stocks that meet minimum liquidity requirements, including $50 million in market cap and 50,000 shares in average trading volume.

My sort is based on the total return performance over the past five days – the immediate aftermath of the attack. But you can also see that each of these stocks are positive year-to-date, and only one is negative on a 1-year basis.

I certainly wouldn’t rush out and buy each of these stocks willy-nilly. But use this as a list of higher-quality names to start your search with. One last thing: There were many other names spoken about quite a bit on TV in the wake of the attack, including FireEye (FEYE, Rated “D”) and Palo Alto Networks (PANW, Rated “D”). But because of their lower ratings, they didn’t make the cut.

Happy stock hunting,

Mandeep

Small Cap Edition, By Mandeep Rai, Senior Analyst Mandeep Rai has more than 15 years of investing experience, working as both a stock and credit analyst. At Weiss Ratings, he researches and evaluates financial and economic themes, and makes decisions on when to buy or sell specific shares for the Top Stocks Under $10 portfolio.