In this article, we will take a detailed look at the 10 Stock News You Can’t Miss As Investors Watch AI Trade Momentum.
Investors are on tenterhooks ahead of earnings from major technology companies. However, a growing view on Wall Street suggests that concerns about a potential AI bubble are misplaced.
Jeff Richards, Notable Capital managing partner, said in a recent program on CNBC that the current AI boom is different from the dotcom bubble because there is no slowdown in demand and the CapEX is being driven by companies that have strong free cash flows.
“And all of this capex spending is being funded by free cash flow from these big players like Meta, Amazon, Google, etc. And I think it’s a little different from the last time around, if you will. The other thing that we’re seeing now is these folks partnering with some of the private equity and large capital partners. You saw the Meta Blue Owl announcement earlier this week. I think we’ll see more of that. And we don’t see any lack of demand. I mean, the thing you always have to ask yourself is, is there demand for all of this infrastructure that’s being built? And the enduser demand that we’re seeing among Fortune 500 companies around the world as well as consumers. Let’s not forget ChatGPT just crossed 800 million users. 10% of the world’s population is using ChatGPT. So I think it’s hard to argue we don’t see end demand and as long as the end demand is there, it’ll fuel the spending that funds all this capex.”
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10. Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc (NYSEAMERICAN:BMNR)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 2
Bryn Talkington from CNBC Investment Committee reiterated her bullish options strategy for BMNR on October 18. Here is what the analyst said:
“Okay, for my crypto friends, Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc (NYSEAMERICAN:BMNR), buy BMNR here. You can sell the November 55 calls. You get 10% or five bucks and if it gets called away in November 21st, you’ve made 20% in a month.”
9. Mp Materials Corp (NYSE:MP)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 40
Jordan Blashek from Perimeter Acquisition said in a recent program on Schwab Network that he’s bullish on Mp Materials amid rising demand for rare earths.
“Mp Materials Corp (NYSE:MP) is beginning to onshore American processing and manufacture of rare earth metals and batteries and magnets. And as we think about kind of bringing back onto our shores various sources of materials for batteries, they’re going to be a key input into that. And things like the recent deal with the US Department of Defense is a good indicator of their criticality into that supply chain.”
Mp Materials Corp (NYSE:MP) is up 184% over the past six months. The US relies heavily on China for rare earth minerals. Amid increasing export controls on rare earths by China, the Trump administration is seeking to expand its local rare earths supplies. Earlier this year, the government entered into a deal with Mp Materials Corp (NYSE:MP) after which the Department of Defense will become the largest shareholder in the company.
8. FTAI Aviation Ltd (NASDAQ:FTAI)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 48
Stephen Weiss, the Chief Investment Officer and Managing Partner of Short Hills Capital Partners, said in a recent program on CNBC that he likes FTAI. However, the analyst warned about potential risks:
“FTAI Aviation Ltd (NASDAQ:FTAI) Clearly, it’s in the right sector, but I’ll tell you, it’s a bit risky because the chart’s not looking great. So, it’s important.”
FTAI is an aviation equipment company with aviation leasing and aerospace products segments.
Crossroads Capital stated the following regarding FTAI Aviation Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTAI) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
“Our position in FTAI Aviation Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTAI) is in a similar boat and exemplifies how markets often fail to recognize the impact of cyclical improvements on companies with high operational leverage paired with diminished capital requirements. Even more so when that business is undergoing a qualitative transformation, as FTAI is. And yet, despite analysts expecting 42% revenue growth for Q2, the market continues to value the stock as if a broader commercial aviation recovery is somehow uncertain or temporary. We think that’s pretty silly and therefore added to our position near the quarterly lows.
Looking forward, the company’s focus on an aging fleet of CFM56 and V2500 engines ensures it’s well positioned to benefit from the global aviation industry’s continued recovery while also maintaining substantial idiosyncratic torque towards an increasingly capital-light, high-margin business model – one characterized by recurring revenues and a more durable moat. While up substantially relative to our average cost, the disconnect between what we believe FTAI’s fundamental value is and the market price suggests highly attractive risk-adjusted returns for some time to come…” (Click here to read the full text)
7. AutoZone Inc (NYSE:AZO)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 65
Jason Snipe, the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Odyssey Capital Advisors, said in a recent program on CNBC that he likes AutoZone.
“I like AutoZone Inc (NYSE:AZO) here. Same store sales were up 70 bps. They opened up 304 new stores this year and I think they’ll continue to open up more.”
Brown Advisory Global Leaders Strategy stated the following regarding AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
“AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) is benefitting from an industry recovery with strong sales growth across both its DIY (Do-It-Yourself) retail and DIFM (Do-It-For-Me) professional customer segments. AutoZone is driving market share growth initiatives though investments in the expansion of its larger inventory “megahub” locations expansion and investment in distribution centers and IT to drive delivery speed and customer experience and supporting long-term market share gains.”
6. Applied Materials Inc (NASDAQ:AMAT)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 81
Jordan Blashek from Perimeter Acquisition said in a recent program on Schwab Network that data centers take about 4% of the entire energy supply in the US, and this figure is expected to jump to 12% by 2028. He believes we are still in the beginning of the AI and data center buildout. According to Schwab Network, AMAT is among the top picks of the analyst.
“We’re at the very very beginning of this AI revolution and capex is frontloaded. So as you think about the data center build, a lot of that’s going to go in upfront but then you’re going to see the rise of AI across various sectors of the economy over the next two, three decades. And so this early capex spend I think is about right. I think you will likely see some air pockets in the near future as there is some turbulence in the markets, but I think long term, unlike the infrastructure of the dotcom boom, the current AI burn is dramatic, it is using up all of that capex very very quickly and the real bottleneck is not the capex spend, it’s going to be in energy,” Blashek said.
Heartland Opportunistic Value Equity Strategy stated the following regarding Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
“During the quarter, we initiated a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT), the largest and most diversified supplier of capital equipment, services, and solutions for semiconductor manufacturing. The company is a major supplier of wafer fabrication equipment (WFE), controlling 21% market share, which was built over decades of organic and inorganic growth. It is the world’s dominant player in deposition, a highly precise, mission-critical step in the fabrication process where a thin film imparts electrical characteristics to the wafer’s surface at the atomic level.
We capitalized on the cyclical downturn in the semiconductor industry to purchase AMAT near our downside target. Our confidence in the company was further strengthened by insider buying, especially a $7mm stock purchase by CEO Gary Dickerson in early April.
In our opinion, Applied Materials will enjoy several tailwinds, including increased demand for advanced packaging and complex manufacturing processes fueled by rising chip architecture complexity. That should boost WFE spending, positioning AMAT as a secular beneficiary.
These tailwinds should lead to a re-rating of the stock as a premier analog semiconductor manufacturer along with Texas Instruments and Analog Devices, which command a multiple well above 25x earnings. At that multiple, AMAT shares could trade in the low $300 range based on mid-cycle EPS, up from its current price of around $170 a share.”
5. Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 94
OptionsPlay’s Tony Zhang recently talked about Micron during a recent interview with Schwab Network. The analyst believes Micron’s valuation is attractive and compared the company with Nvidia. He believes MU has “substantial” upside potential.
“There’s still, in my opinion, a lot more upside here. You know, we’re looking at 50% quarter-over growth in terms of the high bandwidth memory chips that they are now supplying to Nvidia. The fact that Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) trades at only 11 times forward earnings is really what leads me to believe that there’s substantially more upside left in Micron. You see the fact that in the last couple of quarters, they’ve raised guidance substantially both on revenues and earnings, but more importantly for me, they’ve expanded their margins in just the last couple of quarters from 18% to 22% in terms of net margins. That’s not quite the same numbers we’re seeing out of Nvidia, but it’s growing nearly as fast as Nvidia from both the revenue and EPS perspective. They are clearly focusing their attention on a much higher margin business than they have historically been. And that’s why the fact that it only trades at 11 times forward earnings, I think is one of the most undervalued hardware plays within the AI space. And you look at the fact that Samsung, which is the largest player in this particular space of high bandwidth memory chips that go into the GPUs for these AI infrastructure or AI data centers, it’s very clear that Micron is stealing a substantial amount of market share away from Samsung in just the last quarter alone. And that’s really kind of why we’re seeing such high growth in this particular space. So the fact that it only trades at 11 times forward earnings I think is one of the cheapest plays. You know you compare that to Nvidia and I don’t think it’s a fair comparison to put Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) in the same league as Nvidia but the fact that they’re a major supplier for Nvidia chips and Nvidia trades at over 40 times forward earnings, growth rates very similar, and the only difference between Nvidia and Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU) is the fact that net margins are 22% for Micron versus over 50% for Nvidia.”
Baird Chautauqua International and Global Growth Fund stated the following regarding Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU): U.S. semiconductor companies performed well in 2Q25, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Sector Index (SOX) up 29% in the quarter. Micron gained 42% thanks to strong sales growth in high-bandwidth memory (HBM) DRAM, which is essential for AI computing.
4. Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 105
Jessica Inskip from StockBrokers commented on Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT)-OpenAI deal in a recent program on Schwab Network. The analyst is bullish on the stock amid the company’s AI execution and stability.
Walmart recently signed a deal with OpenAI to allow shoppers to make faster purchases directly through ChatGPT.
“That headline is absolutely what caught my attention. They’re bridging AI innovation with everyday retail execution. And as I’m thinking about transformative AI and we’ve talked about the internet of all things and how it integrates into e-commerce, it’s agentic e-commerce. So this is a wonderful example of that. This enhances operational efficiency, customer engagement, but Walmart also has a disciplined pricing strategy which preserves its brand trust and additionally it has a low beta. It’s about 0.6 and a strong balance across categories. So it gives it really Walmart’s a defensive growth play that can be stable in volatility because of the lower beta, but it has innovative and execution with that OpenAI partnership,” Inskip said.
3. GE Vernova Inc (NYSE:GEV)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 106
Jordan Blashek from Perimeter Acquisition explained in a recent program on Schwab Network why he likes GE Vernova Inc (NYSE:GEV). The analyst believes energy will be a “chokepoint” in the AI boom amid rising demand and limited supply.
“We like to look for are the picks and shovels of the AI revolution and especially as they apply to energy as well as companies that are benefiting from the re-industrialization of America. As we think about securing our supply chains against China, we’re going to be looking for companies that do things here that are vital inputs into the AI revolution. So on something like GE Vernova Inc (NYSE:GEV), they make a lot of the wind turbines, the transformers, the various parts of the electricity grid that are going to be vital. And so we see that as a good defensive safe bet as a pick and shovel for the AI revolution.”
Carillon Scout Mid Cap Fund stated the following regarding GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
“GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV) provides technologies and services for generating, converting, storing, and managing electricity, including gas, nuclear, wind, solar, and grid solutions. As with Quanta Services, investors see significant electricity demand growth led by AI data centers, in addition to other drivers. Led by increasing demand for gas turbines, earnings expectations continue to trend higher as GE Vernova’s backlog already stretches into the next decade. Also, as nuclear power is being reconsidered, nuclear power plant turbines and small modular reactors could add additional growth. We see significant opportunities for this market leader to support power demand growth.”
2. Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 156
On March 3, 2023, Stephanie Link from Hightower commented on Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO) quarterly results and said the stock is cheap. Here is what the analyst said at the time:
“If we take any cues from Nvidia we know that their quarter actually wasn’t that good but the guidance was good for Data Center and Ai and that is 30 of broadcom’s total revenues so there’s that we also know that Cisco has a very good quarter and also again another read through to broadcom because they have networking which is about 30 of their total revenue so I feel pretty good about the outfit guidance for broadcom I think the quarter might be very sloppy and a lot of that is because Enterprise is still under pressure cloud is still under pressure but at the end of the day they have 31 billion in backlog the stock has massively lagged this this SMH it’s up only five percent the SMH is up 16 year-to-date it trades up 14 times it is a three percent yield and they’re generating 16 billion dollars in free cash flow a year and so their increase they increase their dividend last quarter buying back stock so I just like this.”
AVGO stock is up 80% over the past six months.
Polen Focus Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:
“In early August we initiated positions in both NVIDIA and Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO), after having not owned either company over the past 2½ years following the initial wave of enthusiasm around Gen AI. While we have long admired both companies, their highly cyclical business models have made it extremely difficult to forecast future earnings growth with any degree of conviction. Given our approach of seeking durable and persistent earnings growth that compounds over long holding periods, our concern in holding either was that we would be forced to endure a punishing downcycle within our typical holding period – there is very little room that in a concentrated portfolio of 20-30 companies. In fact, pre ChatGPT, NVIDIA had two punishing down cycles over the preceding five years.
That is specifically what has occurred for NVIDIA and Broadcom. While the sheer magnitude of demand for AI chips, servers and networking equipment was something that we clearly underappreciated, new incremental data points over the past few months lead us to conclude the current boom in AI chips and related hardware will likely continue for the foreseeable future giving us greater conviction over the trajectory of future earnings for both NVIDIA and Broadcom.
Broadcom is the other major player in the AI chip market, the number one provider of custom chips, and currently receives the majority of the remaining 10c of every dollar being spent by enterprises. As Gen AI use cases mature, and as inference workloads become a bigger piece of the compute pie, we expect that custom chips (and Broadcom’s in particular) will account for a larger share of the total market. …” (Click here to read the full text)
1. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Number of Hedge Funds Investors: 178
OptionsPlay’s Tony Zhang made a bullish case for Alphabet in detail during a latest interview with Schwab Network. The analyst said the market’s concerns over Google’s search business due to the impact of AI turned out not to be true. He believes the company will benefit from AI and it has the capacity to spend on the technology and monetize it.
“You know there was a lot of concern over the last few quarters that generative AI with chatgbt grock and claude that that was going to make Google’s search product irrelevant. I think Google has shown us that that is not the case. If anything, Google’s integration of Gemini into the search engine has been a very successful implementation. On top of that, Google has been very strong and far more aggressive than they’ve been historically on integrating AI directly into the fairly deep product mix of products that they offer across both personal and their business lines. I think that’s really kind of one of the more successful opportunities to actually monetize AI. As all of these tech companies are spending tens of billions of dollars a year in capex to try to dominate in this AI space, there’s a lot of questions from investors as to whether or not that’s going to translate into enough revenue to justify this spend. There’s definitely a lot of concern these days around whether or not AI is quote quote unquote a bubble. But I think with firms like Alphabet, the risk of that is relatively lower because they generate over $95 billion a quarter in revenue. So an $85 billion capital expenditure in fiscal year 25 is something that they are capable of spending. More importantly, Google and Alphabet, similar to Meta, which is another one of my favorite plays within the AI space, has a true capability of monetizing AI across their fairly deep product mix. A lot of people use tools like Gmail and their business suite, their G Suite. This is really where I think they are able to use AI and monetize it. So, the fact that Alphabet trades at only 23 times forward earnings is incredibly inexpensive in my opinion for the long-term upside of AI.”
While we acknowledge the potential of GOOG 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 GOOG and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
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