Best- and Worst-Performing Stocks of May 2024

Hargreaves Lansdown and BT Group rank among the best stocks for the month, while the worst include easyJet and Entain

Bella Albrecht 3 June, 2024 | 4:39PM
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The Morningstar UK Large-Mid Cap Index rose 2.2% in May amid a rally in the communication services sector.

The large-mid index tracks the performance of the top 90% of the UK investable universe by market cap, and each month we screen from among the stocks in this index to find the best- and worst-performing companies. Data in this article is sourced from Morningstar Direct.

Best-Performing Stocks of May 2024

1. Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.)
2. BT (BT.A)
3. International Distributions Services (IDS)
4. Marks & Spencer (MKS)
5. Auto Trader (AUTO)

Worst-Performing Stocks of May 2024

1. easyJet (EZJ)
2. Entain (ENT)
3. Sage (SGE)
4. Burberry (BRBY)
5. National Grid (NG.)

Metrics for the Best-Performing Stocks

Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.)

• Sector: Financial Services
• Industry: Asset Management
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

Hargreaves Lansdown rose 29.7% in May, bringing the stock up 39.4% over the past year.  The company's stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

BT (BT.A)

• Sector: Communication Services
• Industry: Telecom Services
• Economic Moat: Narrow

BT surged 27.3%, but was still down 5.1% for the year. Shares are 21.1% below their last high on June 23, 2023. The company's stock has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars and is trading at a 35% discount to its fair value estimate of £2.00.

International Distributions Services (IDS)

• Sector: Industrials
• Industry: Integrated Freight & Logistics
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

International Distributions Services advanced 24.2%, bringing the stock up 70.9% over the past year.  The company's stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 4 stars.

Marks & Spencer (MKS)

• Sector: Consumer Cyclical
• Industry: Department Stores
• Economic Moat: None

Marks & Spencer advanced 18.8%, leaving the stock up 70.9% for the year.  The company's stock has a Morningstar Rating of 2 stars and is trading at a 31% premium to its fair value estimate of £2.30.

Auto Trader (AUTO)

• Sector: Communication Services
• Industry: Internet Content & Information
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

Auto Trader advanced 16.9%, lifting shares 31.4% from one year ago.  The company's stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Metrics for the Worst-Performing Stocks

easyJet (EZJ)

• Sector: Industrials
• Industry: Airlines
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

easyJet fell 14.6% in May, having fallen 1.6% from one year ago. Shares are 22.2% below their last high on April 10, 2024. The company's stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Entain (ENT)

• Sector: Consumer Cyclical
• Industry: Gambling
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

Entain slid 14.2% and declined 47.8% over the past year. Shares are 52.3% below their last high on Aug. 4, 2023. The company's stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Sage Group (SGE)

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Software – Application
• Economic Moat: Narrow

Sage Group slid 11.7%, shares were still up 20.4% for the year. Shares are 20.4% below their last high on March 25, 2024. The company's stock has a Morningstar Rating of 2 stars and is trading at a 16% premium to its fair value estimate of £8.80.

Burberry Group (BRBY)

• Sector: Consumer Cyclical
• Industry: Luxury Goods
• Economic Moat: Narrow

Burberry Group slid 10.0% and declined 50.4% over the past year. Shares are 54.8% below their last high on June 16, 2023. The company's stock has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars and is trading at a 38% discount to its fair value estimate of £16.80.

National Grid (NG.)

• Sector: Utilities
• Industry: Utilities - Regulated Electric
• Economic Moat: None

National Grid fell 8.4%, leaving the stock down 8.4% for the year. Shares are 16.2% below their last high on May 17, 2024. The company's stock has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars and is trading at a 9% discount to its fair value estimate of £9.70.

Companies that are not formally covered by a Morningstar analyst are statistically matched to analyst-rated companies, allowing our models to calculate a quantitative star rating.

This article was generated with the help of automation and reviewed by Morningstar editors.

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The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.

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About Author

Bella Albrecht  is associate data journalist at Morningstar

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