Remember the FANG trade? It's back, thanks to a rally that's excluded Apple. A slump in the shares of the iPhone maker that erased US$380 billion (S$515 billion) in market value has helped revive interest in the original gang of Facebook, Amazon.com, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet, which have gained anywhere from 10.7 per cent to 50 per cent since Christmas Eve. All except Google have outperformed the S&P 500's 11.3 per cent advance.

Apple has lagged behind, with a gain of just 5.5 per cent over the period.

Apple's rise to become the world's most valuable company all but necessitated its inclusion in the group of stocks revered for their rapid growth, so before long, the FANG acronym was often being replaced by "FAANG."

Now, with the California-based company languishing 33 per cent below an October record, investor focus is shifting.

On Tuesday, Citigroup noted that the firm has buy ratings on all four FANG stocks for the first time in six years. Canaccord Genuity highlighted a strong outlook for the group. Netflix, one of the best-performing large-cap tech stocks last year, has gained 50 per cent since Dec 24.

Amazon has rallied 25 per cent, Facebook 19 per cent. Netflix's gains are an "indicator that investors are likely to return to these stocks quickly if underlying fundamentals are solid," Canaccord analyst Michael Graham said.

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