The winners and losers of the 2018 stock market
By
Social Links for
Carleton English
Published
Dec. 31, 2018, 9:32 p.m. ET
Believe it or not, there are some diamonds in the rough of the 2018 stock market. And some pretty big names, to boot.
Here’s a breakdown of the storied winners and losers as the major indexes hovered around bear market territory:
- Longtime laggard Chipotle Mexican Grill, known for being peppered in past years amid food safety concerns, popped an impressive 49.4 percent. The casual dining chain saw an increase in sales thanks in part to increased digital sales.
- While the so-called FAANG stocks got hammered in the latter part of the year, two of its constituents still managed impressive gains. Netflix soared 39.4 percent in 2018 despite worries over the streaming services’ tendency to burn cash in order to bring programming like “Bird Box,” “Orange Is the New Black” and “BoJack Horseman.” Amazon, which will soon be building offices in Long Island City, was also a big winner, gaining 28.4 percent.
- Facebook, on the FAANG flop side, plunged 25.7 percent as the social media giant was besieged by concerns over how it handles user data.
- L Brands — owner of Victoria’s Secret and Pink — gave up 57.4 percent as consumers continued to shy away from the Victoria’s Secret label. Pink, which caters to young women, also saw declining sales.
- Finally, General Electric got its lights punched out, plunging 56.6 percent amid regulatory probes into its accounting practices.