Barron's Picks And Pans This Week: Apple, Ford, Royal Dutch Shell, Tesla And A Hair Salon Chain

This weekend's Barron's cover story discusses whether Ford can be fixed and its stock can double.

• Other featured articles examine the bull case for Tesla in the S&P 500, some global recovery plays and how badly the pandemic has hurt real estate investment trusts.
• Also, the prospects for a salon operator, automaker dividends, Apple notebooks and more.

Cover story "Ford Can Be Fixed. Why Its Stock Could Double" by Al Root points out that Ford Motor Company F, the fifth-largest automaker in the world, has been among the worst-performing auto stocks during the past five years. See why Barron's believes its new chief executive officer could help fix the company and send its share price much higher.

Leslie P. Norton's "Pandemic or Not, a House Needs a Deck. That's Good News for Azek" shows why Azek Company Inc AZEK, the number two maker of composite wood decking, is growing fast after its June initial public offering. As recycling rises and composite costs fall, says the article, the company anticipates steady growth.

In "Supercuts Owner Regis Is a Postpandemic Play With Style," Nicholas Jasinski makes the case that a transition to a franchise model makes small-cap hair salon operator Regis Corporation RGS stock a buy. Haircuts cannot be sold online and delivered in a box, and investors are looking ahead to when life and business may resemble normality again.

As 2021 approaches and with strong third-quarter results in their rearview mirrors, General Motors Company GM, Ford and other automakers appear to be on their way to restoring their dividends. So says "Improving Cash Flows Put GM and Ford Dividends in Line for Restoration" by Lawrence C. Strauss.

In Alex Eule's "Apple's New MacBooks Have Delighted Critics. Investors Should Care, Too," see why Barron's thinks that while Macs represent just 10% of the total sales at Apple Inc AAPL, the business is once again important to the consumer electronics giant's future.

"Tesla Storms the S&P 500. Here's the Bull Case" by Jack Hough discusses why Elon Musk's electric-vehicle maker continues its amazing rise, yet the value of Tesla Inc TSLA is now so high that car-making profits alone might not be enough, even looking out a decade and assuming massive market-share gains.

See also: Benzinga's Bulls And Bears Of The Week: AstraZeneca, Disney, Ford, GE, Roku And More

The consumer-discretionary sector has gained almost 30% in 2020, making it the second-best performer this year, behind only tech, according to Ben Levisohn's "Tesla Is About to Upend This Sector. What Investors Should Do Now." Discover why Barron's believes that the sector is about to get a whole lot riskier, as well as how investors may want to play it.

In "Three Stocks to Buy as COVID Lockdowns Ease," Bill Alpert looks at the claim that global recovery plays like Anheuser Busch Inbev NV BUD and Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE: RDS-A) are reasonably priced, as investors look ahead to a post-pandemic world. See what else made the cut.

Lawrence C. Strauss's "REITs Have Been Hit Hard by COVID-19. The Impact Could Last for Years" says that COVID-19 has caused the most long-term damage to the value of real estate investment trusts focused on malls and office space. But what about the likes of American Tower Corp AMT and Prologis Inc PLD?

Also in this week's Barron's:

• Questions for the most powerful woman in tech
• How much Joe Biden can actually change tax policy
• Five tax moves to consider for an unusual year
• Why taxable muni bonds are tempting
• Whether companies that fail to measure corporate impact will be left behind
• How emerging markets could benefit from COVID-19 vaccines
• Whether Millennials or Baby Boomers are fueling latest stock rally
• A review of the career of Janet Yellen
• Whether the Bitcoin rally still has legs
• A memory-loss trap to avoid in retirement

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

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