It’s been quite the run in the stock market, for investors of all ages and risk profiles. However, it’s been true that investors who have continued to hold overweight exposure to growth stocks have continued to perform better than those who have been sitting in fixed income assets, cash or other lower-beta stocks.
Quick Read
Alphabet cloud revenue grew 30% year-over-year. Berkshire recently made a massive bet on the stock.
Netflix operating margins exceeded 20% as paid memberships rose 12% year-over-year.
Apple trades at 28-times forward earnings and 8-times sales.
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I’m all in favor of diversification and picking and choosing spots in those sectors. However, I’m also aware that capital continues to chase returns. And while I don’t know how long this can go on for, I also know that swimming against the tide is a move that’s made many long-term investors very poor very quickly.
The market really doesn’t care about an individual’s opinions of whether it’s overvalued or not. As the saying goes, the market can stay irrational longer than many folks can stay solvent. Accordingly, I think there are some stocks worth owning in 2026 that performed incredibly well in past years that will continue to outperform for the remainder of this year.
If I had to bet, these would be the three stocks I’d focus on for another banner year.
Alphabet (GOOG)
This pick, to me, is a no-brainer. Google parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) has become much more than a search engine giant. I mean, that’s still the company’s core cash flow growth engine, and can’t be ignored.
However, the company’s robust cloud business and its dominance in the world of digital advertising and AI innovation can’t be ignored. Quarter after quarter of massive earnings beats have continued, with the company’s most recent Q4 earnings one again shattering expectations.
Despite its incredible size, Alphabet delivered top-line growth of 14% year-over-year, smashing expectations. With cloud revenue fueling most of this growth (up 30% year-over-year) and AI enhancements to the company’s core search business delivering results (never mind a fast-growing AI business Alphabet is growing internally), there’s a lot to like about Alphabet’s long-term upside.
And with Berkshire recently placing a massive bet on Alphabet (signaling its relative value to the marketplace), I don’t think my endorsement can move the needle as much as former Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett. Enough said.