In this article, we will look at the 10 Best Major Stocks to Buy According to Analysts.
For some time now, the AI trade has dominated headlines, and retail investors have focused on niche themes like memory, photonics, and now robotics. This has meant that some of the best businesses in the US haven’t received as much attention as before, resulting in attractive entry points for investors.
This was also mentioned recently by Max Kettner, a Chief Multi-Asset Strategist at HSBC, on Bloomberg Television.
Kettner thinks the opportunity outside the AI universe is worth exploring. He points out that the median company’s earnings growth has improved, not just in the US but also in Europe and Japan. Yet investors are flocking to AI bottleneck plays, taking on enormous risks.
That’s the stuff that I think you want to lean into, play a bit more the broadening and actually play that it’s not just semi, it’s not just that AI infrastructure universe that’s doing well. It’s actually the median company.
The gap in stock performance left by the retail trend’s shift toward the AI trade is therefore worth exploring. It is like going back to the basics of investing, finding strong, durable, wide-moat businesses and investing in them. We therefore decided to look at the 10 best major stocks to buy according to analysts.
Photo by osamu nakazawa on Unsplash
Our Methodology
To compile our list of the 10 best major stocks to buy according to analysts, we reviewed the holdings of blue-chip and wide-moat ETFs to shortlist companies that have consistently demonstrated competitive advantages and leadership positions in their respective industries. These companies have a potential upside of at least 25% and are ranked in ascending order of their consensus potential upside.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Insider Monkey’s quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 599.2% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 372 percentage points (see more details here).
Note: All share price data is as of July 6, 2026.
10. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM)
Potential Upside: 27%
On July 3, RBC Capital analyst Biraj Borkhataria reiterated a Hold rating on Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) stock and set a target price of $180. The firm’s price target reflects 32% upside from current levels, which sits just above the median analyst upside on Wall Street of 27%.
Earlier on June 23, the US Supreme Court allowed XOM to sue Cuban state-owned companies over properties seized decades ago under former leader Fidel Castro. The court ruled that Cuba’s government-owned companies cannot use legal protections that usually prevent foreign governments from being sued in US courts. This decision allowed the company’s case, filed in 2019, to move forward. Moreover, the 6-3 decision allows the oil giant to seek over $1 billion in compensation for assets seized during the 1960 Cuban Revolution. Exxon claimed that a Cuban company, CIMEX, illegally used a refinery and gas stations that had originally belonged to Standard Oil, which later became part of Exxon. The case will return to a lower court for further deliberations on CIMEX’s potential liability.
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) is one of the world’s largest integrated energy companies, with operations spanning oil and natural gas exploration, production, and refining. The company also manufactures fuels, petrochemicals, lubricants, and advanced plastics, while investing in lower-emission initiatives such as carbon capture and lithium production.
9. Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Potential Upside: 30.3%
On June 26, Keb Gawrelski from Wells Fargo reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $312. The revised price target suggests a further 22% upside from the current levels. This upside is consistent with the median Wall Street analyst estimate of 30.3%, based on 72 analysts covering the stock.
On June 25, the company announced that it is adding $13 billion to its planned investments in India. This will expand its artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure footprint in one of its fastest-growing markets. The announcement builds on the company’s earlier commitment to invest more than $35 billion in India by 2030. The e-commerce giant is aggressively expanding its operations in the Southeast Asian country, planning to open more than 20 new fulfillment centers and over 100 delivery stations across India this year.
Amazon is also progressing well in the space race, having launched 29 more Leo satellites on July 2. The company now has 396 total satellites deployed, with operations likely to begin later this year.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) operates across e-commerce, digital content, advertising, and cloud computing. Its online and offline stores offer both in-house and third-party products, while its Amazon Web Services (AWS) division runs one of the world’s largest data center networks.
