Hurricane Ian is moving onshore as a Cat. 4, with 155mph max winds.
“Hurricane Ian is making landfall as one of southwest Florida’s most intense hurricanes on record, expected to produce catastrophic storm surge, destructive winds and flooding rainfall,” says Weather.com. “Ian will remain at least Category 4, but could make an extremely rare Category 5 landfall this afternoon. Regardless, Ian will be a life-threatening, catastrophic landfall, one of southwest Florida’s strongest hurricanes on record.”
Hopefully, you’re not in its track.
As a result of the storm, the hurricane stocks we mentioned on September 22 are surging, including Generac Holdings (GNRC).
As we noted on September 22, “GNRC has a history of running higher around the beginning of the hurricane season. For the 2019 hurricane season, for example, it ran from about $54 to $100. For 2020, it ran from about $125 to $363. In 2021, GNRC ran from about $321 to $410. This year, we’re hoping it can do something similar from severely oversold conditions.”
With Hurricane Ian, GNRC just ran from a low of $167.11 to $185.55 and running.
Home improvement stocks, such as Lowe’s (LOW) and Home Depot (HD) are running, too.
Typically, investors bid these retailers since they historically stand to benefit from increased sales of plywood and other home improvement goods. This segment is “naturally positively exposed to preparation and recovery efforts,” says Morgan Stanley. These “typically see a boost in sales post-storm as damaged property is repaired.”
At the moment, HD is up $11.61 a share with the hurricane. LOW is up $6.25.
We also mentioned Xylem (XYL), which also has a history of running during hurricane seasons. In 2019, for example, it ran from about $76 to $79. In 2020, it ran from about $69 to $80. In 2021, it ran from about $117 to $134. It’s up $1.67 on the day.
Like clockwork…
Again, if you’re in the path of this storm, be safe and get out of its way.