The market has been worried about the potential implications of President Trump's new tariffs on some of the United States’ biggest trading partners. The latest announcements were made for Colombia after a clash between presidents over an immigration issue. However, there are a few stocks that can still outperform in the coming quarters.
Today’s list of chemical manufacturing stocks offers investors a chance to back some of the potential winners for 2025. These stocks can outperform the market and load up their portfolios with some of the best risk-to-reward setups in the industry to protect their downside. With an agenda to boost domestic manufacturing activity and supply chain nationalization, these net exporting stocks could soar despite tariff talks.
This list includes names like DuPont de Nemours (NYSE:DD), which serves the electronics and industrial sectors across the globe, or household name and renowned giant 3M (NYSE:MMM), which is recovering from some of the negative media that surrounded the stock for the better part of 2023 and 2024. Finally, there is Dow (NYSE:DOW), which also applies the same criteria to give investors the sort of upside they need to get 2025 started on the right foot.
1. Wall Street Sees Double-Digit Upside for DuPont Stock
Since the stock bottomed on January 10th, DuPont de Nemours has reached 86% of its 52-week high to return to bullish territory. Now, some in the market, Wall Street specifically, think this stock could not only keep this momentum going but also reach a new 52-week high.
Such as analysts from BMO Capital Markets, who not only reiterated their Outperform rating on the stock as of January 2025 but also placed a valuation on it of up to $105 a share. This new view dares DuPont stock to rally by as much as 35.8% from where it trades today.
Since the electronics industry has broken out in recent manufacturing PMI reports, the odds favor companies that support the further growth and expansion of domestic manufacturing in that area, which is where DuPont stock lives and thrives. This would explain not only the analyst's view of the upside but also the recent institutional buying activity.
Allocators from Robeco Institutional Asset Management decided to boost their DuPont stock holdings by as much as 20% as of late January 2025, bringing their net position to a high of $75.7 million today and another bullish gauge for investors to lean on.
2. 3M Stock’s Momentum Isn’t Over Yet
Over the past month, 3M stock has managed to give investors a net rally of up to 20% to deliver a strong start to the year. However bullish this recent price action may seem, there are reasons to believe this manufacturer will see even better price action ahead.
As a net exporter, 3M is set to ride on the tailwinds listed by Goldman Sachs analysts in their 2025 macro outlook report, and other Wall Street analysts have started to pick up on that theme. For example, Bank of America recently decided to keep a Buy rating on 3M stock while also valuing it at $175 per share.
This new target would imply an up to 17% upside from where the stock trades today, not to mention a call for it to make a new 52-week high. Taking this new momentum and price action as a buy signal, the same DuPont buyers from Robeco Institutional Asset Management decided to expand their exposure to 3M stock as well.
As of January, a 16.1% boost brought the group’s net position to a high of $82.3 million, which should confirm to retail investors that the bullish sentiment is not only accepted but also justified.
3. Dow Stock Brings the Perfect Trifecta
As Dow stock traded down to only 68% of its 52-week high, some market participants decided that it is now too cheap to ignore and that the upside potential justifies taking a second look. This is why analysts from Piper Sandler felt comfortable placing a $53 per share valuation on the stock and calling for a 28% upside from where it trades today.
More than just upside and limited downside, Dow stock – through its strong international and exporting presence – can pay out $2.80 per share to shareholders in the form of dividends, which at today’s low price would translate into a 6.8% yield.
Even though the stock has traded down to bearish territory, short sellers have decided that the move lower is severely limited compared to how much Dow stock could rally, which is why investors can notice a short interest decline of 6.1% over the past month alone, a clear sign of bearish capitulation.