Best- and Worst-Performing Stocks of August 2024

The Morningstar US Large-Mid Cap Index rose 2.4% in August amid a rally in the real estate and healthcare sectors. The index tracks the performance of the top 90% of the US investable universe by market cap. Each month, we screen the index for the best- and worst-performing companies. Data in this article is sourced from Morningstar Direct.

Best-Performing Stocks of August 2024

• Kellanova K
• Exact Sciences EXAS
• Fortinet FTNT
• Nutanix NTNX
• Aspen Technology AZPN

Worst-Performing Stocks of August 2024

• Super Micro Computer SMCI
• Moderna MRNA
• Dollar General DG
• Snap SNAP
• Intel INTC

Metrics for the Best-Performing Stocks

Kellanova

• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Industry: Packaged Foods
• Economic Moat: Narrow

Kellanova rallied 38.6% in August, rising 54.3% from one year ago. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars and is trading at a 3% discount to its fair value estimate of $83.50.

Exact Sciences

• Sector: Healthcare
• Industry: Diagnostics & Research
• Economic Moat: None

Exact Sciences surged 35.0% but was still down 26.3% for the year. Shares are 28% below their last high on Sept. 1, 2023. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars and is trading at a 21% discount to its fair value estimate of $78.

Fortinet

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Software - Infrastructure
• Economic Moat: Wide

Fortinet advanced 32.2%, leaving the stock up 27.4% for the year. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars and is trading near its fair value estimate of $77.

Nutanix

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Software - Infrastructure
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

Nutanix climbed 25.1%, leaving the stock up 103.2% for the year. Shares are 14.2% below their last high on May 21, 2024. The company’s stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 5 stars.

Aspen Technology

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Software - Application
• Economic Moat: Wide

Aspen jumped 24.6%, bringing the stock up 20.7% over the past year. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars and is trading at a 9% premium to its fair value estimate of $215.

Metrics for the Worst-Performing Stocks

Super Micro Computer

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Computer Hardware
• Economic Moat: Not Rated

Super Micro tumbled 37.6% in August, but shares were still up 59.1% for the year. Shares are 64.4% below their last high on March 8, 2024. The company’s stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Moderna

• Sector: Healthcare
• Industry: Biotechnology
• Economic Moat: None

Moderna tumbled 35.1%, leaving the stock down 31.5% for the year. Shares are 54.6% below their last high on May 24, 2024. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 5 stars and is trading at a 66% discount to its fair value estimate of $227.

Dollar General

• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Industry: Discount Stores
• Economic Moat: Narrow

Dollar General fell 31.1%, having fallen 39.0% from one year ago. Shares are 50.6% below their last high on March 14, 2024. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 5 stars and is trading at a 36% discount to its fair value estimate of $130.

Snap

• Sector: Communication Services
• Industry: Internet Content & Information
• Economic Moat: None

Snap slid 29.9%, having fallen 9.8% from one year ago. Shares are 47.8% below their last high on Dec. 18, 2023. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars and is trading at a 33% discount to its fair value estimate of $14.

Intel

• Sector: Technology
• Industry: Semiconductors
• Economic Moat: None

Intel slid 27.8%, having fallen 36.2% from one year ago. Shares are 57% below their last high on Dec. 27, 2023. The company’s stock has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars and is trading at a 5% premium to its fair value estimate of $21.

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.