Penny Stocks to Watch As DOGE Coin Skyrockets

Are Penny Stocks Making A Comeback Right Now?

While some penny stocks have not performed as well as expected this year, others have outperformed expectations. Now, this depends greatly on the industry that a penny stock is in, and what its placement in that market is. On Friday, April 16th, there is already a lot of momentum in early morning trading. 

With any penny stocks to watch, it's important to consider the outside factors that may be having an impact. This can help to determine what strategy you will use to compile a list of stocks to watch. 

Right now, a few things are going on that investors could use to their advantage. This includes the cryptocurrency DOGE Coin, reaching above $0.49 for the first time. This represents a triple-digit gain from where it was only a few months ago. Throughout the week, several cryptocurrencies have hit all-time highs, following the IPO of Coinbase Inc. COIN. 

Additionally, we have to consider the pandemic when thinking about any investment in 2021. One of the most important data points outside of case numbers is the jobless claims. At the height of the pandemic, more than 6 million people made first-time unemployment claims. As of April 10th, only 576,000 Americans applied for unemployment assistance.

"We expect the trend in claims to be downward as the labor market recovery gathers momentum. The four-week moving average will be a better guide to the trend, and in the latest week the four-week moving average fell 47,250 to 683,000, also the lowest since March 14th, 2020."

Nancy Van Houten, a Leading Economist at Oxford Economics

Because investors are constantly looking for the best stocks to buy, this information should be taken into consideration. With this in mind, let's take a look at 3 penny stocks to watch on Friday, April 16th. 

3 Penny Stocks to Watch on Friday 

• Meten Edtechx Education Group Ltd. METX 
• Stonemor Inc. STON 
• Ashford Hospitality Trust Inc. AHT 

Meten EdTechx Education Group Ltd. 

Meten EdTechX Education Group is as its name suggests, an Edtech company working in China. It provides English and other language skills-training for both students and professionals. Meten operates through three sub-brands, all held under the larger brand name. This includes Meten (adult and junior ELT services), ABC (junior ELT services), and Likeshuo (online ELT). All of these services utilize Meten's cutting-edge tech platform. This allows AI-driven teaching and management offerings that can record and analyze how well one is doing daily. 

In staying with the theme of today, Meten recently announced a new plan to allow for a blockchain-based rewards system utilizing Dogecoin. This will be used on its Likeshuo platform, where students will earn Doge every time they complete certain milestones and share knowledge on the platform. 

The first part of the development plan will work to develop a cooperative effort between the company and 3rd party developers. This will help to build out the platform to the best of the company's ability. After this, it will work to integrate the tech into the Likeshuo platform, where it will use blockchain and AI to continue revolutionizing its services. Now, it may take some time before this is finalized. But, with the emphasis on DOGE coin right now, METX could be worth watching.

Stonemor Inc. 

Early in the trading day, shares of STON stock shot up by around 15% to under $2. For some context, Stonemor operates a range of cemeteries and funeral homes in the U.S. It currently has 313 cemeteries and 80 funeral homes spread out across 26 states and Puerto Rico. While this may seem morbid, death is a natural part of life. And, Stonemor has a lot to offer investors. 

During the pandemic, hundreds of thousands around the U.S. have tragically lost their lives. However sad this may be, it has also presented an opportunity STON stock. Not only does it own the assets mentioned above, but it also sells everything from caskets to memorials and mausoleum crypts. Only a few weeks ago, Stonemore announced an agreement to acquire four new cemeteries. 

Joe Redling, the President and CEO of Stonemor stated that "we are very excited to announce that we have entered into an asset purchase agreement to acquire four cemeteries within our East Coast geographic footprint. While this is a small first step, it represents a very important shift in our strategy from focusing on divesting assets to acquiring new locations that align with our existing portfolio."

The deal is not expected to close until early summer of this year. However, this is without a doubt an exciting prospect for the funeral services company. Considering that the pandemic is still running rampant, Stonemor could be an intriguing play. Whether or not it belongs on your watchlist is up to you. 

Ashford Hospitality Trust Inc. 

Ashford Hospitality Trust is another interesting penny stock. It operates a real estate investment trust or REIT. These companies have become extremely popular in the past year or so. This is because they present stable and potentially valuable long-term prospects. Ahead of its proposed Q1 2021 earnings release on May 4th, let's take a closer look at AHT stock. 

As a REIT, AHT uses capital to purchase real estate. It then leases these properties out to those in the hospitality industry. This includes upscale, full-service hotels. In line with this, a few months ago it announced the closing of a $200 million corporate financing deal with the option to increase it to $250 million if needed. 

J Robison Hays, President and CEO of AHT, stated that "we're excited to announce the closing of this strategic financing with Oaktree and believe this partnership will be beneficial for the Company going forward. With this important financing now closed and vaccine distribution ramping up, we look forward to getting our hotels back to profitability and focusing on growth." 

One thing to consider here is AHT's correlation to Covid. Because it works in the hospitality industry, Ashford has taken a big hit from the pandemic. However, with vaccine efforts rising and Covid cases on the decline, we could see a resurgence of bullish activity with AHT stock. Considering this, is Ashford Hospitality worth watching?