The U.S. Federal Reserve’s bumper 50-basis-point interest rate cut last Wednesday caught several market watchers by surprise , one chief market strategist said — sharing where and how he’s investing in such an environment. The U.S. is “five weeks in front of what’s a very chaotic presidential election … and the Fed is never really supposed to make a move up or down in rates this close. The move they made is a big cut,” SlateStone Wealth’s Kenny Polcari told CNBC’s ” Street Signs Asia ” on Sept. 19. Calling it a “crisis level cut,” he added that “people [are] scratching their heads, going, what’s it really mean?” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stressed that the big rate cut does not signal that the risk of a recession is elevated. “You see growth at a solid rate. You see inflation coming down. You see a labor market that’s still at very solid levels. So, I don’t really see that now ,” he said. Sector preferences When asked how he is positioning his portfolio against this backdrop, Polcari said the bulk of his investments are in stocks, while a small percentage is in fixed income. In terms of sectors, he is staying clear of tech and piling in on utilities, “high dividend paying energy names,” consumer staples, financials and basic materials. Those are all “sectors of the market that will probably do well, even if the economy slows. (I’ll) give tech a break [and] let that pull back before I add any more money,” Polcari said. ‘Perfect stock’ Among the stocks he is betting on is Energy Transfer , a midstream energy services company. Polcari sees it as the “perfect stock” to play falling interest rates. He likes that it is “first class in its field” and pays out a “nice dividend of 7.99%.” Shares in Energy Transfer are up around 17.4% since the start of year. According to FactSet data, of the 20 analysts covering the stock, 18 give it a buy or overweight rating, while two have a hold rating. Analysts’ average price target is $19.25, giving it nearly 19% potential upside. Biotech play Another stock Polcari is bullish on is biopharmaceutical player Amgen , given its pipeline of new products . Those include a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) drug called MariTide can be dispensed with a monthly injection, unlike the weekly dosage required by the other drugs in the market; as well as a weight loss pill that is undergoing trials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Polcari said. The company expects “to come out with positive results early next year,” he added. Year-to-date, shares in Amgen are up just over 17% Of the 31 analysts covering the stock, 15 give it a buy or overweight rating, 14 have hold ratings and two have a sell rating. The average price target for Amgen is $325.33, according to FactSet data, giving it a 3.6% downside. ‘On sale’ As for the tech sector, Polcari likes ASML , which he says is “on sale.” The stock is “off about 20% to 25% or so and it’s very [much] like Nvidia — it sits at the nexus of this whole tech trade,” he explained. Shares in ASML are traded on the Euronext Amsterdam and Nasdaq. Year-to-date, its shares up around 5.1%. Of the 38 analysts covering the stock, 29 give it a buy or overweight rating, eight have hold calls and one has an underweight rating. The average price target for ASML is 1,057.52 euros ($1,170), according to FactSet data, giving it 46.2% upside. The Dutch company makes high-tech machines that the world’s biggest chipmakers rely on to manufacture the most advanced chips. With companies in every “industry around the world using AI to change [their] businesses, ASML is going to be one of those names like Nvidia that sits there. So when it’s on sale, you should take advantage of it,” Polcari added. — CNBC’s Sean Conlon to this report.
