5 US payment stocks to watch in 2019

Payment apps are the way of the future, so which companies should you be investing in today?

Matt Leibowitz is the founder of share trading platform Stake and a guest contributor at Finder. The views and opinions expressed in this article (which may be subject to change without notice) are solely those of Matt's and do not necessarily reflect those of Finder and its employees.

Each month, I’ll be running through what’s hot on the Stake platform. It’s a quick snapshot of what our traders are jumping onto or selling out of. Either way, they’re investing in the stock market and trying to make a buck.

I’ll also tell you what’s on our team’s watchlist. Remember, this is not advice. Do your own research, make your own decisions and take responsibility for your investing. That’s where the challenge and joy of being in the stock market comes from.

What payment stocks I'm watching

Firstly, two of my stocks from October paid off, with Frontline (FRO) up over 10% and Lululemon (LULU) up 8.3%, while Helen of Troy (HELE) slid 2%. With the market making all-time highs in late October, you’d be hoping I’d be on the right side of the move.

With all-time highs comes lots of stocks moving up, so I found it pretty easy to find some payment stocks to keep an eye on this month. I’ve limited it down to the five that most readers will know, although the US market is so deep, I could give you a list of a lot more to check out.

5 payment stocks on my watchlist

• Square (SQ): Recently announced that it was offering a commission-free stock brokerage, similar to Stake.
• PayPal (PYPL): Needs no introduction. A behemoth in the payments space. Up over 135% in 3 years.
• Visa (V): You’ve probably got a card in your wallet or connected to your phone. Slid a few % in the last few days of the month, so will be interesting to see how it responds.
• Mastercard (MA): Up 35% for the last 12 months and over 160% for the past 3 years and has really taken it to Visa and Amex recently.
• American Express (AXP): Another giant of the card space. Flat for the month of October, but up 15% in the last 12 months.

Meanwhile, here’s what went down (and up) in October on Stake and what stocks to look out for in November. There are more than 50,000 customers on our Stake platform, and their trade decisions make up the data you see below.

5 best-performing US stocks in October

• Xunlei Ltd (XNET) +97.5%
• Achillion Pharma (ACHN) +70.8%
• Teekay Tankers (TNK) +68.5%
• YRC Worldwide (YRCW) +55.8%
• Arrowhead Pharma (ARWR) +45.6%

5 most traded US stocks in October

• Tesla (TSLA) +28.8%
• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) +16.2%
• Apple (AAPL) +11.2%
• Microsoft (MSFT) +3.7%
• Amazon (AMZN) +2.4%

What your generation is trading

• 18-24: Tesla (TSLA)
• 25-34: Tesla (TSLA)
• 35-44: Tesla (TSLA)
• 45-54: Tesla (TSLA)
• 55-64: Facebook (FB)
• 65+: Saia (SAIA)

For the pros

Commodity exchange traded funds (ETFs) were all the rage in October, with gold and nickel both moving around and palladium making new highs during the month.

Here were the top five commodity ETFs traded by Aussies on Stake:

• CitiGroup 3x Long Crude (UWT) +7.14%
• ProShares 3x Crude Oil (OILU) +2.8%
• VelocityShares 3x Natural Gas Bull (UGAZ)+0.7%
• Direxion Daily Gold Miners (NUGT) -1.3%
• Velocity Shares 3x Natural Gas Bear (DGAZ) -6.62%

To the moon: The most talked about IPO of October is Virgin Galactic

Richard Branson has always aimed high and his most recent company takes it one step further. Commuter space company Virgin Galactic (SPCE) is taking to the clouds and also the stock market.

Focusing on taking everyday people (with money) to space, the company listed in late October and is the first consumer space enterprise to hit the US stock market.

Recent 52 week highs

These are the stocks that have just hit one-year highs. You’ll see why these are worth watching if you read a bit further.

• Nordic American Tankers (NAT) +72.8% in October
• Achillion Pharma (ACHN) +70.8%
• Teekay Tankers (TNK) +68.5%
• Arrowhead Pharma (ARWR) +45.6%
• Seattle Genetics (SGEN) +45.6%

Key disclaimers on this: These are stocks that may suit my strategy and not yours. I have a stop loss planned and ready before every trade. These stocks may go down, or up... or nowhere. Take responsibility for your investments – that's the real joy of being in the market. The money comes from hard work and discipline, not from stock tips.

The information contained in this article is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice, investment advice, trading advice or any other advice or recommendation of any sort. Neither the author nor Finder have taken into account your personal circumstances. You should seek professional advice before making any further decisions based on this information. The views and opinions expressed in this article (which may be subject to change without notice) are solely those of Matt's and do not necessarily reflect those of Finder and its employees.