By Angela Palumbo

A few technology stocks are still out there that can weather the tariff storm, according to analysts at Loop Capital and Stifel.

Tech stocks were hit hard on Thursday by President Donald Trump's new tariffs. The Nasdaq Composite, off 4.9%, had its largest one day percentage decline in almost three years.

And the most highly valued names took the brunt because of all the worry about a global trade war and recession. By early afternoon, the Magnificent Seven had collectively lost $848 billion in market cap and were on pace for the largest one-day market cap decline on record.

"We expect this risk-off environment to affect the riskiest and most expensive parts of the market, which include big tech, many of the AI-related names and the consumer discretionary sectors," David Bahnsen, chief investment officer of the Bahnsen Group, wrote.

Loop Capital analyst Alan Gould laid out three things that the best-positioned companies right now have, in his words: a predictable, recurring revenue stream of a necessary product, revenue less subject to foreign tariffs, and a lower trading multiple and lower leverage.

Gould offered up four media companies to consider, though he cautioned that no company in the sector will be immune from trade levies. The ones he thinks are the best for a "tariff world" include Comcast, Netflix, Fox, and Charter Communications.

Still, even taking everything into account, there are risks.

Gould points out that a slowing economy could lead to a decline in advertising revenue for cable and streaming companies. There's also the possibility that customers downgrade to lower cost subscription options -- Netflix's advertising tier, for example, if inflation gets hotter.

But that these risks, according to Gould, could be offset if cable companies lean into "attractively priced broadband/mobile," bundled offerings, and Netflix has the scale to gain more market share in a tough economic environment.

Outside of the entertainment and media space, Stifel analyst David Grossman remains bullish on International Business Machines.

"While IBM has more cyclical and international exposure, valuation and improving execution may create more favorable risk/reward," he wrote.

IBM has gained 11% this year on Wall Street's expectation that the increase in AI spending will benefit the company.

Write to Angela Palumbo at angela.palumbo@dowjones.com

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April 03, 2025 13:33 ET (17:33 GMT)

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