On Wednesday, October 8, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq composite reached new all-time closing highs. The S&P 500 gained 0.58%. This performance was supported by gains in the information technology, utilities, and industrials sectors. The tech-heavy Nasdaq increased by 1.12%. However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell slightly as it declined 1.20 points.
The stocks did not show a lot of reaction to the release of the Fed’s September meeting minutes. In the meeting, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time in 2025. The minutes revealed that officials had different opinions about how much more to cut rates.
At the same time, the current government shutdown stretched into its 8th day on Wednesday. The Senate rejected dueling stopgap funding bills once again, which marks the sixth failed attempt to advance legislation to reopen the government.
The shutdown has not had much effect on the stock market so far. However, if it continues longer, it could present a bigger threat and start affecting investor confidence as it will potentially be weighing on the US economy.
With this background in mind, let’s take a look at the 10 most profitable stocks of the last 5 years.
Our Methodology
To compile our list of the 10 most profitable stocks of the last 5 years, we looked for companies with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in net income exceeding 15% over the past 5 years. To ensure the reliability of our findings, we consulted Seeking Alpha to confirm the 5-year net income growth rate for each stock. Additionally, we confirmed that these stocks had positive trailing twelve-month (TTM) net income.
Next, we focused on the top 10 most profitable stocks most favored by institutional investors. Data for the hedge fund sentiment surrounding each stock was taken from Insider Monkey’s Q2 2025 database of 983 elite hedge funds. Finally, the 10 most profitable stocks of the last 5 years were ranked in ascending order based on the number of hedge funds holding stakes in them as of Q2 2025.
Why do we care about what hedge funds do? 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 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
10 Most Profitable Stocks of the Last 5 Years
10. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)
5-Year Net Income CAGR: 17.58%
TTM Net Income: $55.15 Billion
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 124
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is one of the most profitable stocks of the last 5 years. On October 6, Reuters reported that JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is appointing Conor Hillery and Matthieu Wiltz as co-chief executive officers for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). This information comes from an internal memo seen by Reuters.
This update comes as JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) looks to step up its efforts in the region and aims to raise its EMEA revenues by 20% by the end of the decade. Hillery and Wiltz together bring nearly 50 years of experience at the bank. They were previously deputies to Filippo Gori, the outgoing chief.
Hillery is currently the head of investment banking in the EMEA region. Wiltz leads the sales division in the region. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) said these two bring a combination of market knowledge and industry expertise.
According to JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), these two new CEOs will keep their current roles in banking and sales and join the commercial and investment bank management team.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is an American multinational financial services firm with leading positions in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing, and asset management.
9. Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B)
5-Year Net Income CAGR: 23.13%
TTM Net Income: $62.92 Billion
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 133
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B) is one of the most profitable stocks of the last 5 years. On October 2, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B) announced that it has entered a definitive agreement to acquire Occidental’s chemical business, OxyChem.
According to the report by Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B), this deal has an all-cash transaction value of $9.7 billion and is expected to be concluded in the fourth quarter of 2025.
OxyChem manufactures essential commodity chemicals that are used in areas like water treatment, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, and both commercial and residential development.
Through this acquisition, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B) will get a strong set of operating assets, which are supported by an experienced and skilled team. OxyChem will become an operating subsidiary within Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B)
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-B) is an American multinational company that is engaged in a wide range of businesses including insurance and reinsurance, utilities and energy, freight rail transportation, manufacturing, services, and retailing.
