Ten stocks stood firmer on Friday, defying a broader market pessimism, as investors digested a flurry of strong corporate earnings and upbeat outlooks, among others.
In contrast, all Wall Street indices finished in the red, led by Nasdaq dropping 0.94 percent, followed by the S&P 500 declining 0.43 percent, and the Dow Jones shedding 0.36 percent.
Indices aside, we focus on the 10 top-performing stocks on Friday and break down the reasons behind their gains.
To come up with the list, we focused exclusively on stocks with more than $2 billion in market capitalization and 5 million shares in trading volume.
10. Church & Dwight Co. Inc. (NYSE:CHD)
Church & Dwight grew its share prices by 4.67 percent on Friday to close at $96.25 apiece as investors took heart from strong earnings last year, an upbeat outlook, and a higher dividend payout to its investors.
In an updated report, Church & Dwight Co. Inc. (NYSE:CHD) said that it was able to grow its net income by 26 percent to $736.8 million in full-year 2025 from $585.3 million a year earlier, while net sales inched up by 1.6 percent to $6.2 billion from $6.1 billion in the same period.
In the fourth quarter, however, net profit dropped by 24 percent to $143.5 million from $189.2 million, while net sales picked up by 1.26 percent to $1.6 billion from $1.58 billion, exceeding company expectations.
Looking ahead, Church & Dwight Co. Inc. (NYSE:CHD) expects to rake in 3 to 4 percent growth in organic sales amid confidence about the strength of its brand portfolio.
Reported sales, however, are projected to decrease by 0.5 percent to 1.5 percent as a result of exited businesses in 2025.
Full-year earnings per share are targeted to increase by 18 to 22 percent, with the bulk of growth expected in the second half of the year.
Meanwhile, Church & Dwight Co. Inc. (NYSE:CHD) increased its quarterly dividend payout for the 30th consecutive year by 4.2 percent from $0.295 previously to to $0.3075 per share at present, bringing its annual dividend payout to $1.23 per share.
The first round of dividends is payable on March 2, 2026 to all shareholders on record as of February 13, 2026.
9. GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME)
GameStop grew its share prices by 4.78 percent on Friday to close at $23.88 apiece as investors digested announcements that it is set to acquire a huge company that could support its transformation into a several-hundred-billion-dollar entity.
“It’s gonna be really big. Really big. Very, very, very big,” GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) CEO Ryan Cohen said in an interview with CNBC on the same day, adding that the plan could be genius or totally foolish.
He did not divulge further details about the firm.
Cohen added that the planned acquisition is going to be “transformational not just for Gamestop, but ultimately, within the capital markets.”
“This is something that really has never been done before within the history of the capital markets.” he noted.
GameStop Corp.’s (NYSE:GME) ambitions followed an equity incentive program for Cohen in January that will only pay out if it reaches a $100 billion in market capitalization and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of $10 billion.
Cohen took over as chief in September 2023 and has since been successful in cutting costs and growing GameStop Corp.’s (NYSE:GME) profitability.
In the third quarter last year, the company grew its net income by 343 percent to $77.1 million from only $17.4 million in the same period in 2024, bringing its nine-month tally to $290.5 million versus none year-on-year.
8. Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)
Colgate-Palmolive rallied for a second day on Friday, jumping 6.10 percent to finish at $90.29 apiece as investors took heart from a cautiously optimistic outlook for 2026 amid a challenging market environment that dented profits last year.
In an updated report, Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) said that it expects its net sales to grow by 2 to 6 percent in full-year 2026, including the impact of low single-digit foreign exchange gains.
Organic sales are projected to inch up by 1 to 4 percent, including a 20-basis point impact from its pet food brand exit.
However, it still expects “difficult operating environment and slower category growth to continue in the short term,” albeit already operating from a position of strength.
Last year, Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) dropped its attributable net income by 26 percent to $2.13 billion from $2.89 billion in 2024. Net sales inched up by 1.4 percent to $20.38 billion from $20.1 billion, despite a 0.7 percent negative impact from lower private label pet volume.
In the fourth quarter alone, Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) swung to an attributable net loss of $37 million from a $739 million attributable net income in 2024. Net sales grew by 5.78 percent to $5.23 billion from $4.94 billion, despite a 0.9 percent negative impact from lower private label pet volume.
7. Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK)
Sandisk Corp. rallied to a new all-time high on Friday, as investors took heart from a stellar earnings performance in the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, underpinned by the strong demand for its storage products, thanks to the rapidly growing artificial intelligence sector.
At intra-day trading, the stock soared to its highest price of $676.69, marking a 25 percent climb, before trimming gains to end the day just up by 6.85 percent at $576.25 apiece.
In an updated report on the same day, Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) said that net income in the second quarter soared by 672 percent to $803 million from only $104 million in the same period a year earlier.
Revenues jumped by 61 percent to $3.025 billion from $1.876 billion, while operating income climbed by 446 percent to $1.065 billion from $195 million.
Of the total revenues, the Edge segment contributed the bulk of the revenues at $1.678 billion, followed by consumer at $907 million, and data center at $440 million.
“This quarter’s performance underscores our agility in capitalizing on better product mix, accelerating enterprise SSD deployments, and strengthening market demand dynamics, all at a time when the critical role that our products play in powering AI and the world’s technology is being recognized,” Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) CEO David Goeckeler said.
For the third quarter, Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) is targeting revenues at a range of $4.4 billion to $4.8 billion, with gross margins of 64.9 percent to $66.9 percent.
6. Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR)
Charter Communications managed to eke out a 7.62 percent gain on Friday to close at $206.12 apiece, as investors took path from the lower than expected decline in Internet subscriptions in the fourth quarter of the year.
In an updated report, Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) said a total of 119,000 customers cut their Internet subscription in the fourth quarter of the year, markedly lower than the 131,970 as expected by Visible Alpha analysts.
Total video customers also increased by 44,000 as compared with a decline of 123,000 in the same quarter in 2024, with the improvement driven by new and simplified pricing and packaging launched in September 2024 and benefits from the inclusion of programmers’ streaming applications in Spectrum’s expanded basic packages.
Net income attributable to shareholders declined by 9.1 percent to $1.332 billion from $1.466 billion, primarily due to lower Adjusted EBITDA, merger and acquisition costs related to the previously announced Cox transaction, and higher income tax expenses.
Total revenues dipped by 2.3 percent to $13.6 billion from $13.93 billion, due to lower revenues from residential video and political advertising sales, which were partially offset by a revenue jump in residential mobile services, mobile equipment, residential Internet, and a $37 million total customer credit related to hurricanes Helene and Milton.
5. Applied Optoelectronics Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)
Applied Optoelectronics surged to a new record high on Friday, reflecting strong investor confidence in its business despite the absence of fresh developments.
At intra-day trading, the stock jumped to its highest price of $48.31 before paring gains to finish the session just up by 10.21 percent at $43.61 apiece.
The rally was supported by a research firm’s optimistic outlook for Applied Optoelectronics Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) earlier in the week, saying that its laser transceivers are critical to the AI revolution “because they overcome the speed and bandwidth limitations of traditional copper cables, making them valuable for enabling the massive, low-latency data flow required from training and operating large AI models.”
“Additionally, with copper prices rising currently, these fiber optic cables are even more valuable,” the research firm said.
Earlier, Applied Optoelectronics Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) unveiled a new 400-milliwatt narrow-line-width pump laser designed to meet growing demand for silicon photonics and co-packaged optics (CPO) in AI data centers.
The new product is capable of addressing situations where lasers with broader line widths or higher noise figures limit performance. It can source directly into semiconductor chip-scale systems to provide hyperscalers with a robust, high-performance light source for CPO, silicon photonics, and other applications that demand precision and power from a single, stable wavelength.
4. Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ:UNIT)
Uniti Group extended its winning streak to a third straight day on Friday, jumping 10.64 percent to close at $8.32 apiece as investor sentiment was bolstered by its successful raising of $960 million in fresh funds through the issuance of secured fiber network revenue term notes.
In a statement, Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ:UNIT) said that the notes were secured by certain residential fiber network assets and related customer agreements in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio and Texas. The initiative was made through its subsidiary, Kinetic ABS Issuer LLC.
Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ:UNIT) said that proceeds from the offer will be used for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures and repayment of outstanding debts, among others.
In connection with the agreement, Kinetic also entered into a $150 million variable funding note facility which it can tap in a later date when needed, in a bid to support liquidity reserve and cover specified payment shortfalls.
“We are beyond thrilled to have completed our inaugural fiber-to-the-home securitization, a transaction that saw unprecedented levels of demand from investors for its kind. This transaction, combined with our prior securitization offerings at Uniti Fiber, provides capital to help fund our fiber buildouts and strengthen our balance sheet at a very attractive cost,” said CFO Paul Bullington.
In other news, Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ:UNIT) said that it would release the results of its earnings performance in the fourth quarter and full-year 2025 before market open on March 2, 2026
3. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)
Verizon extended its winning streak to a third day on Friday, jumping 11.82 percent to finish at $44.52 apiece as investor sentiment was bolstered by its highly optimistic outlook for 2026, coupled with a strong earnings performance last year.
In an updated report, Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) announced targets of retail postpaid phone net additions between 750,000 and 1 million this year, which is approximately 2 to 3 times higher than in 2025.
Total mobility and broadband service revenues are projected to grow 2 to 3 percent to $93 billion.
Last year, Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) saw its attributable net income drop by 1.9 percent to $17.17 billion from $17.5 billion in 2024, while revenues jumped by 2.5 percent to $138.19 billion from $134.8 billion.
For the fourth quarter alone, attributable net income declined by 53.2 percent to $2.34 billion from $5 billion, while revenues inched up by 2 percent to $36.38 billion from $35.68 billion.
Postpaid phone net additions stood at 616,000, up 22 percent from 504,000 year-on-year, and so far the best quarter for the segment since 2019.
2. Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE:DECK)
Deckers Outdoor soared by 19.50 percent on Friday to close at $119.34 apiece as investors took path from a strong earnings performance and an upbeat outlook for the full fiscal year 2026.
In its earnings call on the same day, Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE:DECK) said that it netted $481 million in the third quarter ending December 31, or a 5.3 percent jump from $456.7 million in the same period a year earlier.
Net sales jumped by 7 percent to $1.957 billion from $1.827 billion year-on-year, thanks to strong demand from its UGG and HOKA brands, with net sales jumping 4.9 percent and 18.5 percent, respectively.
“UGG and HOKA each delivered high levels of full-price selling, resulting in strong gross margins. We are on track to deliver another incredible year, with profitable growth at two premium and differentiated brands that operate in expanding segments of the global marketplace,” said Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE:DECK) President and CEO Stefano Caroti.
For the full fiscal year ending March 2026, Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE:DECK) expects net sales to be in the range of $5.4 billion to $5.425 billion, as well as gross margins of approximately 57 percent.
Diluted earnings per share are also targeted at $6.80 to $6.85.
1. Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI)
Robert Half extended its winning streak to a second day on Friday, jumping 27.83 percent to close at $34.61 apiece as investors took heart from an investment firm’s 14 percent price target upgrade for its stock.
In its market report, Truist raised its price target for Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI) to $40 from $35 previously, while maintaining its “buy” recommendation, suggesting confidence despite the latter reporting a dismal earnings performance last year.
In an earnings call, Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI) said that net income last year dwindled by 47 percent to $132.99 million from $251.6 million in 2024, while service revenues declined by 7 percent to $5.38 billion from $5.79 billion year-on-year.
In the fourth quarter alone, net profit dropped by 42 percent to $31.7 million from $54.29 million in the same period a year earlier, while service revenues dipped by 5.8 percent to $1.3 billion from $1.38 billion.
Robert Half Inc. (NYSE:RHI) is a global talent solutions company providing staffing recruitment and consulting across a wide range of services including finance, accounting, technology, legal, marketing, and administration.
While we acknowledge the potential of RHI to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than RHI and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
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