The Latest Picks And Pans From Barron's: Barrick Gold, BioNTech, Facebook, WW And More

• This weekend's Barron's cover story discusses a beleaguered social media giant that is still a buy.
• Other featured articles share infrastructure picks, capital spending picks and a veteran fund manager's income picks.
• Also, see the prospects for an up-and-coming biotech, a gold rebound play, a personal services provider and more.

Cover story "Like It or Not, Facebook Stock Is a Buy" by Max A. Cherney points out that social network Facebook, Inc. FB has been beat up by controversy, and yet users and advertisers keep showing up. See why Barron's believes investors now have a chance to buy a growth story on the cheap. Could the stock see a gain of 20% or more in the next year?

Daren Fonda's "Stocks That Could Gain the Most From Biden's Infrastructure Plan" discusses how many infrastructure plays have already run up, yet there could be further gains if the market sees a bill inching toward passage. Featured picks run the gamut from Aecom ACM to Vulcan Materials Company VMC.

In "BioNTech Has Surged on Covid Vaccine. Its Next Big Hit Might Take a While," Josh Nathan-Kazis shows how BioNTech SE BNTX CEO and co-founder Ugur Sahin intends to make this Germany-based biotech the next Amgen, Inc. AMGN or Genentech.

Due to Bitcoin's growing acceptance as an alternative asset class and to higher Treasury rates, gold has lost some of its luster, according to "Gold Is Due for a Comeback. Barrick Is a Good Way to Play It" by Andrew Bary. Find out why Barron's thinks shares of mining giant Barrick Gold Corp GOLD offer a cheap and attractive hedge against financial turmoil.

In Avi Salzman's "Americans Are Ready to Shed the Pandemic Pounds. This Stock Can Benefit," discover how WW International Inc WW, the former Weight Watchers, has weathered the lockdowns and shifted its focus to digital subscriptions. The article makes the case that this consumer stock is a healthy reopening play.

"American Road Trip: How the Motel Industry Grew Up" by Kenneth G. Pringle chronicles the growth of the motel industry from the start, as "ramshackle cabins" led to the modern offerings from Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Inc WH and its peers. Find out how Holiday Inn reshaped the industry and spurred its growth.

See also: Benzinga's Bulls And Bears Of The Week: Apple, GM, JetBlue, Lululemon, Tesla And More

Conditions are ideal for a pickup in capital expenditure — even before an infrastructure push. So says Jack Hough's "11 Stocks That Could Get a Shot in the Arm as Business Spending Gains." The featured picks include the likes of Applied Materials, Inc. AMAT, Caterpillar Inc. CAT and Schlumberger NV SLB.

In "Fund Vet's Top Picks: 'Dogs,' Reopen Plays, REITs, and Preferreds," Lawrence C. Strauss reveals the latest ideas from a veteran fund manager who has spent much of his long career seeking income across stocks, bonds and other asset classes. Check out what the expert sees in Coca-Cola Co KO, Verizon Communications Inc. VZ, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc WBA and others.

Sarah Max's "It's a Great Time to Own Financial Stocks. Here's Why" suggests that the financial sector is poised to shine, notwithstanding the emergence of newly disruptive technologies. See whether Square Inc SQ and Wells Fargo & Co WFC are among those stocks that are worth a look now.

Also in this week's Barron's:

• Whether good news could turn into bad news for investors
• Big tech's role in the Biden infrastructure play
• Whether the torrid market still has room to run
• The case for liquid alternatives 2.0
• A first-quarter roundup
• How to choose a winning value exchange-traded fund
• Whether unconstrained bond funds are the answer to rising interest rates
• The COVID-19 technologies that could revolutionize health care
• Whether new CDC sailing orders are good news for cruise lines
• The 2021 surge in luxury hotel openings
• Investing lessons from the Archegos crackup

At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.

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