- Consumer companies are facing myriad challenges including the ongoing US-China trade war, a late-cycle economy, and political uncertainty.
- Morgan Stanley expect these factors could lead to disappointing earnings for consumer businesses.
- The firm's analysts selected eight consumer stocks they believe are best positioned to outperform their peers.
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Between the US-China trade war, political uncertainty, and a late-cycle economy, consumer businesses are navigating a challenging environment.
Morgan Stanley warned investors in a note Monday that these factors could lead to a compression in earnings for consumer stocks.
"Even if economic growth rebounds and continues at a modestly below-trend rate, we think rising costs and tight labor markets lead earnings growth to materially disappoint expectations over the next few months, creating elevated short-term downside risk," Morgan Stanley's analysts wrote.
The bank's analysts identified eight stocks in the consumer space they believe are best positioned to outperform their peers.
Markets Insider calculated the implied upside of each stock using their closing prices on Monday and the price targets in the report.
Here are Morgan Stanley's top eight consumer stock picks: