Markets closed the week with the S&P 500 pushing toward its record high. Investors are cheering an in-line read on inflation coupled with weak employment data as signs that an interest rate cut is a near certainty. Investors were also cheering better-than-expected consumer confidence data from the University of Michigan survey.
The Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision could be the fuel that sends stocks to a FOMO-driven, year-end rally that could spill into 2026. However, uncertainty has been the only certainty in the markets in 2025.
Earnings season is winding down, and retail investors might be taking a holiday break. However, the MarketBeat analysts remain focused on the stocks and stories influencing the market. Here are some of our most popular articles from this week.
Articles by Thomas Hughes
NVIDIA Corp. NASDAQ: NVDA continues to dominate the AI trade. However, the landscape is expanding as the global supercycle ramps up. This week, Thomas Hughes gave investors five semiconductor stocks that are well-positioned for growth in 2026.
The AI revolution is also boosting robotics stocks such as Symbotic Inc. NASDAQ: SYM. Hughes summarized the company’s latest earnings report, which included bullish guidance for accelerating revenue growth backed by new client wins.
The end of an earnings season is a time to separate the winners and losers. One way to find the winners is to target the companies that are getting upgraded by analysts. Hughes wrote about five of the stocks with the most upgrades this earnings season.
Articles by Sam Quirke
Qualcomm Inc. NASDAQ: QCOM has been grinding higher in 2025, but it hasn’t been a smooth ride. However, Sam Quirke explains why QCOM stock made a bullish move this week. Analyst support suggests this may be more than a technical move.
Quirke also helped investors understand why the sideways price action in Amazon.com Inc. NASDAQ: AMZN is a sign of strength, not stagnation. As Quirke noted, while other technology stocks look overvalued, AMZN stock could be a catch-up trade.
Several retail stocks catering to value-conscious consumers have performed well this earnings season. Ross Stores Inc. NASDAQ: ROST just had blowout earnings, and Quirke explained why a $200 share price by Christmas may be in play.
Articles by Chris Markoch
2026 may be the year when direct trading by members of Congress is curtailed. Or not. In the meantime, however, Chris Markoch used the MarketBeat Congressional Data tool to point out three stocks that allowed Congress to beat the market again.
Palantir Technologies Inc. NASDAQ: PLTR stock dropped almost 20% from its all-time high. However, Markoch noted two international deals that could be evidence that Palantir’s future growth won’t be limited to the United States.
It hasn’t been a good month for CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. NASDAQ: CRWD and even a strong earnings report wasn’t enough to lift investor sentiment. Markoch analyzed the company’s report and explained why a higher share price is inevitable.
Articles by Leo Miller
Whether or not investors believe in an AI bubble, a little diversification can go a long way. This week, Leo Miller pointed investors to an equal-weight exchange-traded fund (ETF) that reduces concerns of concentration risk in the Magnificent Seven stocks.
When stocks charge higher, it can be an opportunity for companies to reward shareholders with buybacks. Miller highlighted three stocks that boosted their buyback capacity in the last quarter.
The risk of stocks making outsized moves is that they could go too high too fast. Miller noted that this seems to be the case with MongoDB Inc. NASDAQ: MDB. The company is executing to a tee, but the upside may be limited due to concerns that much of the growth is already priced in.
Articles by Nathan Reiff
The quantum computing sector continues to be volatile—perhaps too volatile to be involved with any one stock. Nathan Reiff explained why that’s a great reason to look at quantum-focused ETFs. Reiff gave investors three names to consider. While they still contain risk, they spread that risk over several stocks and several sectors.
The recent slide in Bitcoin has been disastrous for Strategy NASDAQ: MSTR. The stock is down over 40% in 2025, and it may be pulled from the popular Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) indices. But Reiff pointed out that MSTR stock could be a contrarian play for investors who believe in the company’s Bitcoin strategy.
In this season of gift-giving, Reiff reminded investors that it could be time for some gifts in the market. That could mean investing in one of the retail stock ETFs that offer broad exposure to the growing e-commerce space.
Articles by Dan Schmidt
The AI revolution is becoming like a horse race with several companies jockeying for position. In the last month, Alphabet Inc. NASDAQ: GOOGL has charged into the lead. However, this week, Dan Schmidt highlighted three stocks that are most likely to get a tailwind from Google’s AI breakthrough.
Articles by Jeffrey Neal Johnson
While much of the AI infrastructure story focuses on graphic processing units (GPUs), Jeffrey Neal Johnson reminded investors that this is also a supercycle for the memory industry. As the leader in the sector, Micron Technologies Inc. NASDAQ: MU will benefit from a multi-year supply lag that could push its stock to $338.
The week ended with news that Netflix Inc. NASDAQ: NFLX was successful in its bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery NASDAQ: WBD. That’s a great reason to read Johnson’s article, which came out when the bid was first announced. He explained why the deal may effectively end the streaming wars.
Johnson also explained why the recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) of $800 million in funding for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) takes the nuclear energy buildout from theory to reality. Johnson directed investors to three SMR stocks that are flashing buy signals.
Articles by Jordan Chussler
Bitcoin is down, but as Jordan Chussler pointed out, the 2026 forecasts for BTC are generally bullish. If that’s true, then now is the time for investors to consider beaten-down Bitcoin ETFs such as the iShares Bitcoin Trust NYSEARCA: IBIT.
The AI infrastructure boom has driven up the price of several leading data center and utility company stocks. This week, Chussler highlighted a diversified AI infrastructure ETF that gives investors exposure to the sector without the volatility of owning single stocks.
It may surprise some investors that Costco Wholesale Corp. NASDAQ: COST stock is up just 1.34% in 2025. The company has faced tariff headwinds and a bifurcated consumer. However, Chussler explained why 2026 could be a bullish year for COST stock.
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