In this article, we will take a look at the 10 Best Most Active Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds.
Wall Street bulls believe the rise in US stocks has more room to run, dismissing fears that massive gains in AI-related stocks signal market extremes. The S&P 500 reached new closing highs 11 times in May, bringing the US blue-chip index up roughly 11% this year.
Small-cap firms have also performed well, with the Russell 2000 index outperforming the S&P 500 in the final week of May, despite a drop on May 29. Speaking on this, Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at US Bank Asset Management Group, stated the following:
“We’re seeing strength, both home and abroad, and among large and small companies. That is typically a backdrop for upward-trending equity prices.”
Sandven stated that much of the market’s growth is due to strong first-quarter results. He emphasized the S&P 500’s around 22% year-over-year earnings increase, which can be attributed to a market surge fueled by stronger foundations rather than stretched values.
Our Methodology
For this list, we used stock screeners to identify equities with the highest 3-month average volume. These stocks, widely held by hedge funds and followed by analysts, are ranked according to hedge fund interest as of the first quarter of 2026.
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. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 498.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 303 percentage points (see more details here).
10. Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 97
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 15, HSBC boosted Cisco Systems Inc.’s (NASDAQ:CSCO) rating to Buy and hiked its price target to $137 from $77, citing a stronger-than-expected AI infrastructure demand pattern that has significantly changed the company’s growth profile. Analyst Stephen Bersey explained to investors that Cisco’s fiscal third-quarter results revealed a fundamental shift, with AI infrastructure orders totaling $1.9 billion for the quarter.
HSBC stated that Cisco’s Silicon One CPUs and Acacia optics led AI outperformance, which was supported by other hyperscaler design results. Total revenue increased 12% year-over-year to $15.84 billion, about 2% higher than expected, while non-GAAP EPS of $1.06 outperformed expectations by 2.5%.
Looking forward, Cisco management increased its fiscal 2026 AI infrastructure order aim to about $9 billion from $5 billion, assuming a significant Q4 increase, and boosted full-year AI revenue expectations to about $4 billion from $3 billion. Meanwhile, HSBC increased its fiscal 2026 to 2029 non-GAAP earnings per share CAGR projection to 13.6% from 9.8%, based on a higher 29x price-to-earnings multiple.
Cisco Systems, Inc. is involved in the manufacture, design, and sale of Internet Protocol-based networking products and services associated with the communications and IT industry.
9. Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 99
Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 29, Tigress Financial boosted its price target for Walmart Inc. to $155 from $150, while retaining a Buy rating on the company’s shares. According to the firm, Walmart’s AI-driven platform shift has unlocked a number of high-margin growth catalysts.
According to Tigress Financial, Walmart’s omnichannel and marketplace diversification, supply chain automation, and digital shift are propelling economic profit growth and company performance improvements. Walmart’s Sparky AI Assistant was particularly cited by the firm as boosting customer engagement and revenue.
Meanwhile, in response to Walmart Inc.’s first-quarter earnings, Evercore ISI reaffirmed its Outperform rating and $140 price target for the company on May 26. Walmart’s digital operation, which exceeds $100 billion in size, had a 12% variable margin during the quarter.
Evercore ISI also reaffirmed its earnings per share projections for fiscal year 2027 at $2.95 and for 2028 at $3.35.
Walmart Inc. is an omnichannel retailer operating retail and wholesale stores, clubs, e-commerce websites, and mobile applications. It offers an elaborate array of items, from general merchandise and electronics to food, groceries, and more.
8. Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 102
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 20, Alibaba Group Holding Limited unveiled a significant overhaul to its AI stack, which includes cloud infrastructure, model-based services, AI processors, and foundation models, to assist clients in developing and deploying AI agents. Notably, at the Alibaba Cloud Summit, the company revealed Qwen3.7-Max, its most recent LLM designed for agentic programming, intricate reasoning, and long-term task performance.
The model is tailored for agent platforms such as OpenClaw, Hermes Agent, and Claude Code, and is capable of handling over 1,000 tool calls without experiencing performance decrease for as long as 35 hours.
Additionally, on May 14, Benchmark reaffirmed its $220 price objective and Buy rating on Alibaba Group Holding Limited. Alibaba’s fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results, according to the firm, came in below consensus but were generally consistent with forecasts. Due to robust enterprise demand, AI-related revenue grew at triple digits, while external AI cloud revenue surged to roughly 40% year-over-year.
Alibaba Group Holding Limited operates as a technology infrastructure and marketing solutions provider. It operates both within the People’s Republic of China and internationally. The company was founded by Chung Tsai and Yun Ma in June 1999 and is headquartered in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.
7. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 170
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 14, Evercore ISI boosted its price target for Apple Inc. to $365 from $330, while keeping an Outperform rating on the tech giant’s shares. The firm recently published its sixth annual Apple primer, which outlines investment themes that are expected to influence the company in the years to come.
The firm listed a number of growth drivers, such as ongoing premiums of the iPhone product line with an anticipated foldable launch, a steady shift toward offerings that boost gross margins, possible increases in market share, strong capital returns, and prospects for monetizing AI.
Evercore ISI believes Apple Inc. may amplify earnings per share and free cash flow at a low to mid-teens rate despite weak iPhone unit growth, thanks to service growth and increased average retail prices from higher-end models. The firm stated that a successful Apple Intelligence rollout might open up new revenue opportunities without forcing Apple Inc. to meet the capital expenditure levels of hyperscalers.
Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and home accessories. The company develops its own operating systems (iOS and macOS) and provides digital services, including iCloud, Apple Pay, and content streaming via the App Store and Apple TV+.
6. Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 173
Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 27, Broadcom Inc. introduced a series of new systems-on-chip products for Wi-Fi 8 routers and mesh systems. Dubbed the BCM6772, BCM6774, and BCM6776, the devices combine application processors, network processors, Wi-Fi airwaves, and multi-gigabit Ethernet elements on a single chip.
According to the company, components that formerly needed several chips are combined in the integrated method. Every device comes with a network processing engine and a quad-core CPU complex.
Similarly, a day earlier, Broadcom Inc. unveiled the BCM68850, a 50G PON home gateway system-on-a-chip that combines Wi-Fi 8 compatibility with a neural processing unit. According to the company, this wraps up an end-to-end 50G PON portfolio for broadband networks.
Similarly, a day earlier, Broadcom Inc. unveiled the BCM68850, a 50G PON home gateway system-on-a-chip that combines Wi-Fi 8 compatibility with a neural processing unit. According to the company, this wraps up an end-to-end 50G PON portfolio for broadband networks.
Broadcom Inc. is a technology company that specializes in semiconductor devices (through the Semiconductor Solutions segment) and infrastructure software solutions (through the Infrastructure Software segment).
5. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 234
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. Bernstein SocGen Group increased its price target for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited to $430 from $351 on May 18, while upholding an Outperform rating on the company stock. The firm anticipates the company’s earnings per share to expand at a compound annual rate of 28% over the coming two-and-a-half years.
Bernstein stated that it sees little evidence that competitors like Intel are closing the technological or price gap with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited. The firm believes that any prospective manufacturing by Apple at Intel would be restricted to smaller products and would not diminish Taiwan Semi’s revenue, given the company’s sales are limited by capacity.
Meanwhile, Bank of America reaffirmed its Buy rating on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited following the company’s technology conference in Taiwan. The firm feels that “recent concerns are overdone” as TSMC’s scalability and technological edge in advanced nodes continue to expand its lead against competitors.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited is a Taiwanese multinational semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company that manufactures, packages, and tests integrated circuits for various industries.
4. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 262
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 29, Citizens reiterated a Market Outperform rating and a $825 price target for Meta Platforms, Inc.. The firm stated that Meta collaborated with Stripe earlier in March to offer a checkout solution backed by Stripe’s Agentic Commerce Suite.
After choosing their size on a product description page, customers proceed to the checkout page to complete their transaction. The user experience, according to Citizens, is comparable to that of the defunct Facebook and Instagram Shops.
As Meta Platforms, Inc. expands product labeling throughout its content, Citizens anticipate an increased push for on-platform checkout. The firm pointed out that compared to Meta’s prior checkout process, the Universal Checkout Platform offers more functionality, such as subscription and loyalty options.
The same day, BofA Securities reaffirmed its Buy rating and $835 price target for META shares in response to the company’s introduction of a new enterprise-focused AI project.
To encourage businesses to use its AI tools, Meta Platforms, Inc. created a new Enterprise Solutions division. With the aim of generating repeatable deployment methodologies to increase adoption, the newly formed group focuses primarily on tailoring AI solutions for enterprise clients.
Meta Platforms, Inc. develops products that allow people to share and connect with their family and friends using PCs, mobile devices, virtual reality (VR) headsets, and AI glasses. Some of its well-known apps include Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. It operates in the Reality Labs (RL) and Family of Apps (FoA) segments.
3. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 265
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. Following recent industry developments, Goldman Sachs restated its Buy rating and $450 price target for Alphabet Inc. on May 21.
Analyst Eric Sheridan emphasized Alphabet’s AI advancements over the last few years as the company recently promoted Google I/O 2026, Google Marketing Live, YouTube Brandcast, and The Android Show.
The analyst mentioned investor concerns around capital investment and return on expenditure in both its core advertising and Cloud operations, in addition to the long tail of legacy search ads in a progressively agentic-based user compute environment.
The same day, TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating and a $450 price target for GOOGL shares in light of the tech giant’s I/O developer conference. The firm observed that Alphabet has introduced new artificial intelligence products and provided consumption numbers for existing AI services.
Alphabet Inc. is a holding company that operates Google services such as search engines, ad platforms, Internet browsers, devices, mapping software, app stores, video streaming, and more. The company also offers cloud infrastructure and platform services, collaboration tools, and other services for enterprise customers, as well as healthcare-related services and internet services.
2. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 275
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 29, Tigress Financial boosted its price target for NVIDIA Corporation to $425 from $360, while retaining a Strong Buy rating on the company. The firm underlined NVIDIA’s status as the key infrastructure driver of the AI industrial age, as well as its full-stack technology superiority.
The firm noted NVIDIA’s record first-quarter 2027 results, with revenue up double-digit percentages and non-GAAP EPS up low-triple-digit percentages.
Furthermore, on May 27, NVIDIA Corporation CEO Jensen Huang unveiled the company’s Constellation campus in Taipei, indicating plans to invest as much as $150 billion per year in Taiwan. The facility is intended to house approximately 4,000 personnel and will function as one of the largest AI research and development centers in the Asia-Pacific.
Huang stated during the unveiling ceremony that the company’s annual expenditure in Taiwan has increased from $10 to $15 billion some years ago to $100 billion now, with plans to reach $150 billion.
NVIDIA Corporation is a fabless semiconductor and AI computing company that designs GPUs, AI accelerators, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), and system-on-a-chip units. Through its CUDA ecosystem, the company enables industries ranging from autonomous vehicles to scientific research by advancing AI, accelerated computing, and data center infrastructure.
1. Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 353
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) ranks among the best most active stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On May 29, Wolfe Research reaffirmed its Outperform rating and $320 price target for Amazon.com Inc., noting potential for growth in the company’s supply chain services division.
On May 4, Amazon.com Inc. launched Amazon Supply Chain Services, which includes two new solutions for non-Amazon vendors: Amazon Freight for under-truckload shipping and Global Logistics for maritime and air transport.
Wolfe Research believes the overall addressable market for Amazon Supply Chain Services exceeds $1.2 trillion. The market is estimated to be worth $750 billion for freight, $120 billion for distribution and fulfillment, $200 billion for US shipping, and $100 billion for international parcel shipping.
Additionally, UBS reaffirmed its Buy rating on Amazon.com Inc. and set a price target of $333 on May 27. After exceeding its estimate for the first quarter of 2026, the firm improved its methodology for projecting AWS segment revenue.
The firm projects that AWS will rake in $350 billion to its backlog by 2026 and beyond. In contrast to consensus forecasts of $166.6 billion and a 29% increase, this corresponds to a revenue prediction of $175.9 billion for the segment, reflecting a 36% year-over-year growth.
Amazon.com Inc. 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.
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