Why Steph Curry is the MVP -- of Social Data Investing

Stephen Curry is a model of consistency on the court – and on Twitter.

Yes, that's Curry tweeting the exact same thing before two different games of the NBA Finals. And you might see another tweet like that soon, because Curry's Golden State Warriors take on LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the NBA Finals tonight.

When Stephen Curry takes the floor for Game 3 of the NBA Finals, he'll be thinking about making plays, nailing shots, and maintaining the form that made him this season's basketball MVP. It's probably safe to say that he won't be thinking about his portfolio.

But despite all that, Steph Curry's Twitter is good for one more thing besides producing identical pump-up tweets – and that's beating the market!

No, really. Take a look at this graphic from LikeFolio:

Those sections around the wheel represent the 10 companies behind the products that Curry references most on Twitter. It's quite a list: $UA, $UN, $EXPR, $TWTR, $LVS, $FL, $FB, $SNE, $DIS, $FINL. 

For the most part, these are companies that everyone wants in their portfolio. Over the past 52 weeks, The SPLASH CURRY 10 stocks have gained 19.51%, which easily beats the S&P 500's 6.59% growth.

And here's something Curry will be happy to hear – he beat his NBA Finals nemesis LeBron James, whose most-mentioned stocks gained "only" 18.84%.

Why does this work? It's because great companies generate great buzz on Main Street. Looking at social data, such as social volume, is a great way for investors to "eavesdrop" on the conversations that are happening on Main Street. 

Once the data is in your hands, it's as simple and turning around and applying your new knowledge to Wall Street!

–Andy Swan is the founder of LikeFolio, which searches all of Twitter for important shifts in consumer behavior around the brands owned by publicly-traded companies.