What Happened?

A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after a confluence of negative economic data pointed to a weak economy. The latest Survey of Consumer Expectations from the New York Fed revealed that households' short-term inflation expectations are rising, while their outlook on the labor market is deteriorating. Consumers expressed greater concern about potential job losses and expect lower earnings growth, factors that directly impact discretionary spending. 

Adding to the unease, Chief Economist at Moody's Analytics, Mark Zandi, warned that 22 states are already showing clear signs of a recession, placing the broader U.S. economy in a precarious position. The ongoing U.S. government shutdown further dampens sentiment, threatening to weigh on incomes and purchasing power.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.

Among others, the following stocks were impacted:

• Casino Operator company Golden Entertainment (NASDAQ: GDEN) fell 3.8%. Is now the time to buy Golden Entertainment? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Footwear company Genesco (NYSE: GCO) fell 3%. Is now the time to buy Genesco? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Apparel and Accessories company Under Armour (NYSE: UAA) fell 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Under Armour? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Footwear company Nike (NYSE: NKE) fell 3%. Is now the time to buy Nike? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Home Furnishings company La-Z-Boy (NYSE: LZB) fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy La-Z-Boy? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Zooming In On Golden Entertainment (GDEN)

Golden Entertainment’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 9 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful, although it might not be something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 3 months ago when the stock dropped 7.7% on the news that Truist Securities downgraded the company's stock. The investment firm lowered its rating on Golden Entertainment to "Hold" from "Buy" and cut its price target on the shares to $34 from $36. The downgrade was prompted by anticipated weakness at the company's Stratosphere property, leading Truist to reduce its second-quarter EBITDA estimates. EBITDA, or Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization, is a key measure of a company's operating performance. Truist analysts noted that instead of seeing expected growth in 2025, they now forecast a 4% decline in the company's full-year EBITDA. This revision places their estimate 2% below the consensus on Wall Street.

Golden Entertainment is down 29.8% since the beginning of the year, and at $21.85 per share, it is trading 35.9% below its 52-week high of $34.09 from February 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Golden Entertainment’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,576.

Here at StockStory, we certainly understand the potential of thematic investing. Diverse winners from Microsoft (MSFT) to Alphabet (GOOG), Coca-Cola (KO) to Monster Beverage (MNST) could all have been identified as promising growth stories with a megatrend driving the growth. So, in that spirit, we’ve identified a relatively under-the-radar profitable growth stock benefiting from the rise of AI, available to you FREE via this link.