2022 Investment Themes

Ready Player One

 

2022 could be the year "Avatars" become a buzzword just as "Metaverse" was in 2021 and perhaps will continue in 2022. For starters, the metaverse comprises multiple digital realms. Each is like a 3D virtual world where avatars live, work, and play. Companies focused on creating the metaverse could be the next huge investing opportunity. Here's how I'm investing:

Hardware

Microsoft (MSFT) with Hololens; Meta Platforms (formally Facebook) (MVRS) with Oculus; and of course Apple (AAPL) with no official product announced.

Software

Unity Software (U); Autodesk (ADSK); NVIDIA (NVDA)

Platforms

Roblox (RBLX); Snap (SNAP); Disney (DIS); Epic Games (Private); Niantic Labs (Private)

Welcome to Crypto-Street

 

2021 saw the explosion of crypto/blockchain projects many of which was an average ROI of over +600% with projects like Solana reaching +10,000% ROI (look again, your eyes are not lying to you). 2022 could be the year you see crypto or at least crypto related companies in your retirement portfolios e.g., 401K. Here's how I'm investing:

  • Smart Contract Platforms: Ethereum (ETH); Solana (SOL); Avalance (AVAX); Near (NEAR); Harmony (ONE)

  • Web 3.0: Polygon (MATIC); Chainlink (LINK); Helium (HNT); Livepeer (LPT); Audius (AUDIO); The Graph (GRT); Handshake (HNS)

  • GameFi: Axie Infinity (AXS); Decentraland (MANA); Enjin Coin (ENJ); WAX (WAXP); Forte (pending ICO); Starkware (SHARK pending ICO)

 
 

Renewable Energy Takes Center Stage

A wise man once said, "Follow the money". The year ahead promises new growth paths for the renewable energy industry, with some potential headwinds. Next-generation clean energy technologies will likely continue on a path toward commercialization. Here's how I'm investing:

  • Energy Storage: Tesla (TLSA); Fluence Energy Inc. (FLNC); Generac Holdings (GNRC); Form Energy (Private)

  • Solar: Enphase Energy (ENPH); Sunrun (RUN)

  • Green Hydrogen: Plug Power (PLUG); Bloom Energy (BE); Ballard Power Systems (BLDP)

 
 

Any ~$10 stocks?

2021 was the year of SPACs (special purpose acquisition company) aka blank check companies. Most SPACs start at $10/share prior to a merger. SPACs have received a bad reputation recently due to their lackluster performance, however, there are some post SPAC mergers that a poised for longterm (3-5 years) growth. These are the pre and post SPAC mergers I'm investing in:

  • Pre-Merger SPACs: Pershing Square Tontine Holdings Ltd. (PSTH); Churchill Capital Corp VII (CVII)

  • Post-Mergers: Lucid (LCID); Draftkings (DKNG); SoFi (SOFI); Opendoor (OPEN); Ginkgo Bioworks (DNA); Vicarious Surgical (RBOT); Rocket Lab (RKLB); Aurora Innovation (AUR); Nextdoor (KIND); Grab (GRAB); Planet Labs (PL); Ionq (IONQ); Matterport (MTTR); Quantumscape (QS)

 

The Year of Mega IPOs

Global initial public offerings (IPO) in 2021 smashed their previous record, propelled by a SPAC boom and companies cashing in on high valuations. Over 2,850 companies and SPACs raised nearly $700 billion in IPOs, according to Bloomberg. 2022 could see much fewer SPACs than in 2021 but will have more mega IPOs than in 2021. Here're the mega-private companies I'm watching to IPO in 2022:

  • Space X

  • Stripe

  • Klarna

  • Canva

  • Databricks

  • Fanatics

  • Instacart

  • Checkout.com

  • Gopuff

  • Epic Games

  • OpenSea

 
 

Take A Basket With You

I know what you're thinking, how do you expect me to buy all these stocks? Lucky for you, there are some great ETFs tracking these themes. Here's what you can add to your watchlist:

  • Ready Player One (Metaverse): Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF (META)

  • Welcome to Crypto-street: Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF (BLOK)

  • Renewable Energy Takes Center Stage: iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (ICLN)

  • Any ~$10 Stocks?: Defiance Next Gen SPAC Derived ETF (SPAK)

  • The Year of Mega IPOs: Renaissance IPO ETF (IPO)

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