These stocks are best positioned for the 'megatrends' caused by Covid-19, UBS says

Published Sat, Jun 20 20208:24 AM EDT

Jesse Pound @/in/jesse-pound @jesserpound

(This story is for CNBC Pro subscribers only). The post-pandemic investing world will be dominated by "megatrends" that separate winners and losers, according to UBS. Those trends, made up of the acceleration of existing patterns and some new themes, include shifts "from Globalisation to Stasis" and "from Hypercapitalism to Higher Taxes," the bank said in a note to clients. "The lessons consumers, businesses and governments learn, as they live through an eight-standard-deviation growth event, will very likely stick," the note said. The industries most positively impacted by these trends will include education, e-commerce and pharmaceuticals, the note said. In education, the massive economic disruption caused by the health crisis could lead to an increased and continuous demand for the learning while also accelerating the shift to online learning. The bank's analysts picked TAL Education Group , a Chinese tutoring company, as a stock with a buy rating, and said online learning company Pearson could benefit as well. UBS has a buy rating on TAL, whose shares have risen 39% this year, and a neutral rating on Pearson, which has lost 14% year to date. In the pharmaceutical indusctry, Merck is one of UBS' top picks, in large part because of its vaccine business. "In a post covid-19 world, we are bullish on vaccine manufacturers given potential for increased urgency to address preventable diseases – MRK is one of the largest developers and manufacturers of vaccines," the note said. The pharma giant's stock has underperformed the broader market this year, falling 14%. UBS also said in its note that it buys the idea that the shift to e-commerce will be permanent in some cases. "Consumers have adjusted their shopping behaviours as they 'sheltered in place' (as evidenced by Q1 results/management commentary for several US e-commerce companies) and we believe some of these behaviours are likely to remain over the long term in a post-COVID-19 world," the note said. Outside of the U.S., the industry is poised for solid growth in China and Russia, the note said. The bank has buy ratings on many e-commerce companies, including U.S.-based giant Amazon and luxury marketplace The RealReal .

A worker pushes Amazon.com Inc. packages in front of a FedEx Corp. delivery truck in New York.

Christopher Lee | Bloomberg | Getty Images

(This story is for CNBC Pro subscribers only).

The post-pandemic investing world will be dominated by "megatrends" that separate winners and losers, according to UBS.

Those trends, made up of the acceleration of existing patterns and some new themes, include shifts "from Globalisation to Stasis" and "from Hypercapitalism to Higher Taxes," the bank said in a note to clients.

"The lessons consumers, businesses and governments learn, as they live through an eight-standard-deviation growth event, will very likely stick," the note said.