In this article, we cover 11 best short-term stocks to buy now.
The best performers right now, given price momentum and negative 1-year returns, are oil & gas exploration and chemicals plays based on our research. Oil- and commodity-linked industries have been unusually prominent in short-term rebound screens in recent weeks, even though many of their stocks still remain below year-ago levels. That pattern makes sense in the current market. Crude prices moved sharply higher after the late-February Middle East conflict disrupted supply expectations, with the IEA saying global oil supply was projected to plunge by 8 million barrels a day in March. The EIA now expects Brent to stay above $95 a barrel over the next two months before easing later in 2026.
That backdrop tends to support exploration and production shares first, because higher realized prices can quickly change cash-flow expectations for upstream companies. Reuters reported that oil benchmarks had risen about 60% since the conflict began, while analysts in its March poll lifted their 2026 Brent forecast to $82.85 a barrel from $63.85 a month earlier.
Chemicals are showing up for a related, though less straightforward, reason. The sector remains under pressure from weak demand and high energy costs in parts of the market, but supply disruptions have pushed some plastics and polymer prices sharply higher. Reuters said German chemical-sector confidence deteriorated in March as energy costs rose, while ICIS reported that global chemical prices were increasing at their fastest pace in almost 20 years.
Methodology
We used screeners to identify stocks with 3-month price momentum over 12% and 1-year return at -10%. We limited our final selection to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. These stocks are also popular among analysts and elite hedge funds.
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).
11. Mesa Royalty Trust (NYSE:MTR)
Mesa Royalty Trust (NYSE:MTR) is one of the best short-term stocks to buy now. On March 30, 2026, the trust filed its annual report for the year ended December 31, 2025. Distributable income prior to cash reserves withheld for trust expenses was $510,906 in 2025, compared with $534,956 in 2024. After reserve adjustments, distributable income available for distribution rose to $433,915 from $393,144, while distributable income available for distribution per unit increased to $0.2328 from $0.2109.
The filing shows the improvement came despite lower royalty income. Royalty income fell to $601,840 in 2025 from $649,164 in 2024, mainly because prices for natural gas liquids and oil and condensate declined, natural-gas volumes fell, and natural-gas operating costs increased. Mesa said those pressures were partly offset by higher natural-gas prices, lower operating costs for liquids and oil, and lower capital expenditures, which declined to $102,300 from $142,351. The trustee also said the contingent reserve stood at $1.95 million at year-end 2025 and that it intends to increase that reserve to $2.0 million.
Mesa Royalty Trust (NYSE:MTR) is a Texas trust that owns overriding royalty interests in oil and gas properties in the Hugoton field of Kansas and the San Juan Basin in New Mexico and Colorado.
10. Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI)
Valhi, Inc. (NYSE:VHI) is one of the best short-term stocks to buy now. On March 10, 2026, the company reported a net loss attributable to stockholders of $53.2 million, or $1.86 per share, for the fourth quarter of 2025, compared with net income of $22.8 million, or $0.80 per share, in the year-earlier quarter. For full-year 2025, Valhi posted a net loss of $57.6 million, or $2.02 per share, versus net income of $108.0 million, or $3.79 per share, in 2024. Management said the decline was driven primarily by weaker operating results in its Chemicals segment.
That business remained the main drag. Chemicals segment net sales slipped 1% to $418.3 million in the fourth quarter and 1% to $1.9 billion for the full year. The segment swung to a $60.1 million operating loss in the quarter from operating income of $32.6 million a year earlier, as lower TiO2 selling prices, reduced operating rates, and about $10.3 million of workforce-reduction costs hit results. For the full year, the segment recorded a $24.5 million operating loss versus $138.5 million of operating income in 2024. Valhi also said fourth-quarter results included an $8.5 million non-cash deferred income tax expense tied to a valuation allowance in the Chemicals segment’s German deferred tax asset.
Valhi, Inc. (NYSE: VHI) operates in chemicals, component products, and real estate management and development.
