Tech stocks and FAANG: What investors get wrong

Getty/Leon Neal

• Tech investors have had a rough two months as a number of the biggest names in the industry have tumbled into bear-market territory.
• The FAANGs (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Alphabet – Google), have seen around $1 trillion in market value wiped out.
• HSBC says investors concerns over the tech sector are overblown, and that it’s time to buy the dip. 
• The bank lays out seven misconceptions about the sector. 

Tech investors have had a rough two months as many of the most-popular names have tumbled into a bear-market — down at least 20% from their recent highs.

The FAANG (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Alphabet – Google) stocks, which were a key pillar of support for the market, have been among the hardest hit, seeing as much as $1 trillion wiped out from the recent peak of their market values.

And with many of tech’s biggest names sitting at or near their lowest levels in months, HSBC says this is an opportunity to buy the dip. The firm is overweight on IT stocks that are focused on hardware and semis, such as Alibaba, Samsung Electronics, Xiaomi, and Yandex. 

“The declines have come against a backdrop of rising concerns over a sharper slowdown in earnings, regulatory constraints, heightened valuations, and stretched positioning,” said a group of HSBC analysts led by Ben Laidler.

“While some caution is warranted, we believe that the extent of these concerns is overblown, and highlight seven misconceptions on the sector.” 

Here is a snapshot of the seven misperceptions that HSBC says investors have right now: