Goldman strategist: This sector has been ‘unduly' punished and could be a buy right now

Published Tue, May 10 20227:33 PM EDTUpdated Wed, May 11 20223:52 AM EDT

Sharon Bell, a senior strategist at Goldman Sachs , has shared her favorite sectors after this week's market madness , some of which she said have "incredibly low" valuations. Speaking to CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday — as the day's sell-off got underway — Bell said to look for sectors that have fallen sharply amid the recent market volatility, such as renewable energy stocks. "Look for the areas perhaps that have been unduly, harshly punished by markets and perhaps don't deserve it and have got good growth prospects. I think some good examples of that will be companies exposed to the trend of renewable energy," she said. "We know governments are pushing for investment and we know these high energy prices make it even more of an imperative. And a lot of those were growth companies at very high multiples and they've come down," Bell, who is a senior strategist on the European portfolio strategy team at Goldman Sachs Research, added. Investors had plowed money into renewable energy stocks as the war in Ukraine shone a spotlight on energy security. Flows into renewables funds reached more than $600 million in March, according to MorningStar, after three months of decline. However, stocks have slid over the last month as markets digested persistently high inflation and interest rates on the rise . Meanwhile, energy and mining stocks also have "incredibly low" relative valuations, according to Bell. "They had a decade or more of underperformance really over a very long period of time. And people haven't invested enough, just general capex in energy supply and in mining supply and metals in general. So, I feel their prices are still very well supported." U.S. trading 'on the high side' With regards to different geographies, Bell said that U.S. stocks were trading "on the high side" versus history. She said global stocks look "relatively inexpensive" right now, with emerging markets trading on the cheap side, although she noted there are risks investing in the latter. Europe, meanwhile, is currently trading at below average price-to-earnings multiples, Bell added ⁠— a low P/E ratio can mean that a stock is undervalued. Read more HSBC thinks these global energy stocks could be winners — and gives one upside of over 100% Traders search for signs of a bottom as stocks dive. Why investors should proceed with caution The great American consumer is navigating inflation and just may save the economy from a recession Given the weakness in European currencies versus the dollar at the moment, Bell also likes companies with international exposure. "Having dollar income is amazing for a European company at the moment, because European currencies have collapsed, really, against the dollar … If you have international exposure – and this is actually the reason the FTSE 100 has done relatively well this year — it's got lots of those commodity companies in there, but it's also got a lot of general dollar earners," she said. - CNBC's Jeff Cox and Pippa Stevens contributed to this report.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

Sharon Bell, a senior strategist at Goldman Sachs, has shared her favorite sectors after this week's market madness, some of which she said have "incredibly low" valuations.

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