In this article, we will look at the 12 Most Profitable S&P 500 Stocks to Invest In.
Profitability is being watched more closely as investors look beyond headline earnings and ask how efficiently companies turn shareholder capital into profits. For this list, return on equity, or ROE, provides the main measure of that efficiency.
Invesco says that quality investing focuses on companies that are “highly profitable, carry low levels of debt, and generate stable earnings.” It adds that a high ROE can imply “efficient management of the firm’s equity base.” MFS cautions that “Profitability is necessary but not sufficient,” since leverage and accounting choices can inflate profitability metrics. J.P. Morgan Asset Management similarly describes quality companies as having “strong balance sheets, high returns on capital, and consistent earnings.” Put simply, high ROE is most meaningful when it comes from durable operations. Against this backdrop, highly profitable S&P 500 companies deserve a closer look.
With that in mind, let us examine the 12 Most Profitable S&P 500 Stocks to Invest In.
Our Methodology
We used the Finviz screener to identify S&P 500 stocks that have a return on equity of at least 20%. We then 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. Insider Monkey’s quarterly newsletter strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 599.2% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 372 percentage points (see more details here).
12. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)
On June 18, 2026, Citi resumed coverage of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) with a Neutral rating and a $1,020 price target. Citi views Costco as a long-term market share gainer but sees balanced risk/reward at current share levels.
Earlier in June, DA Davidson maintained a Neutral rating and $1,000 price target on Costco while adding the stock to its “Best-of-Breed Bison List.” DA Davidson cited Costco’s private-label products, general merchandise assortment, pharmacy, optical, and gas businesses, which help attract warehouse traffic. DA Davidson also pointed to low prices, distribution efficiency, a relatively small SKU count, and membership fee income as barriers to entry.
Last month, Truist raised its price target on Costco to $1,011 from $977 and maintained a Hold rating. Truist said Costco’s consistent mid-single-digit comparable sales growth at a $300B annualized sales run rate “continues to amaze,” but noted that membership growth continues to moderate.
Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) operates membership warehouses across the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden.
11. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)
On June 23, 2026, Allergan Aesthetics, an AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) company, announced that Health Canada approved Boey for the temporary improvement of moderate to severe lines between the eyebrows in adults. Boey is the first and only approved botulinum neurotoxin serotype E with a rapid onset and short duration for temporarily improving glabellar lines.
Also on June 23, Canaccord raised its price target on AbbVie to $273 from $265 and maintained a Buy rating. Canaccord updated its model following AbbVie’s announced acquisition of Apogee Therapeutics (APGE), which Canaccord believes makes strong strategic sense by adding a potential mega-blockbuster immunology asset for AD and asthma that could become a major growth driver over the next decade.
AbbVie also announced that the European Commission approved Maviret, an oral pangenotypic direct-acting antiviral therapy, for treating acute hepatitis C virus infection in adults and children aged 3 years and older. Maviret is now the only treatment approved in the European Union for both acute and chronic HCV infection.
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) researches, develops, manufactures, commercializes, and sells medicines and therapies worldwide.
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