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.
10. The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA)
On June 24, 2026, The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) was awarded a maximum $2B fixed-price-incentive-firm-target contract for Phase II of the Mobile User Objective System service life extension effort. Boeing will design, develop, build, and provide launch and on-orbit test support for two MUOS satellites. Work is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2035. The competitive acquisition received two offers, with Space Systems Command serving as the contracting activity.
On June 23, Boeing received a $121.2M cost-plus-fixed-fee order for nine retrofit A-kits with Increment Three Block Two Engineering Change Proposal Six capabilities, three installations of I3B2 retrofit A-kits and government-furnished B-kits on Navy P-8A aircraft, and related non-recurring engineering. Work is expected to be completed in May 2029. The action was not completed, and Naval Air Systems Command is the contracting activity.
On June 19, Boeing was awarded an $880,000,000 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covering the procurement, modernization, and sustainment of P-8A Poseidon aircrew and maintenance training systems.
The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) designs, develops, manufactures, sells, services, and supports commercial jetliners, military aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight and launch systems, and services worldwide.
9. AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)
On June 17, 2026, AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) disclosed that Pascal Desroches announced his retirement as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer on June 11, effective December 31, 2026. AT&T appointed Jennifer Biry as Deputy Chief Financial Officer on June 15, effective July 6, 2026. Biry will become Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer on January 1, 2027. The filing described Biry, 52, as the former CFO and COO of McAfee since 2022. Biry previously held senior finance, sales, and strategy positions at AT&T beginning in 1999, including serving as WarnerMedia’s Executive Vice President and CFO from 2020 to 2022.
On June 12, Freedom Broker initiated coverage of AT&T with a Buy rating and a $30 price target. Freedom Broker said the U.S. telecom and cable sector entered 2026 at a more advanced stage of convergence than consensus had expected. While Freedom Broker views T-Mobile (TMUS) as the strongest fundamental story based on its spectrum position, EBITDA growth, FCF margin, and balance-sheet flexibility, Freedom Broker called AT&T “a clear convergence story.”
On June 10, AT&T launched Unlimited Day Pass, offering eligible U.S. iPad users, including non-AT&T customers, 24 hours of unlimited wireless data for a $3 flat rate without contracts, subscriptions, or credit checks.
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) provides telecommunications and technology services worldwide through its Communications and Latin America segments.
8. AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP)
On June 22, 2026, Citi removed its “upside 90-day catalyst watch” on AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) while maintaining a Buy rating and $710 price target. Citi expects the company’s e-commerce clients to ramp more slowly following Axon’s general availability.
Earlier in June, Edgewater Research upgraded AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) to Outperform from Neutral.
Last month, JPMorgan analyst Cory Carpenter raised the firm’s price target on AppLovin to $515 from $500 and maintained a Neutral rating. Carpenter cited a Q1 beat and Q2 guidance that was in line with expectations. Piper Sandler also raised its price target on AppLovin to $665 from $650 and maintained an Overweight rating. Piper Sandler described the results as a “clean beat and raise,” with Q1 revenue increasing 59% year-over-year and coming in 3.8% above Street estimates, the largest percentage beat since Q1 2025.
Earlier in May, AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) reported Q1 EPS of $3.56. Revenue totaled $1.84B, above the consensus estimate of $1.78B.
AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) provides end-to-end artificial intelligence-powered advertising solutions for businesses in the United States and internationally.
7. Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)
On June 25, 2026, the Food and Drug Administration approved Trodelvy from Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) for two indications in adults with triple-negative breast cancer. The first approval covers sacituzumab govitecan-hziy as a single agent for the first-line treatment of adults with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic TNBC who are not candidates for PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitor-based therapy. The second covers sacituzumab govitecan-hziy in combination with Merck’s (MRK) pembrolizumab, or Keytruda, or pembrolizumab and berahyaluronidase alfa-pmph, or Keytruda Qlex, for first-line treatment in adults with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic TNBC whose tumors express PD-L1 as determined by an FDA-authorized test.
On June 23, Gilead Sciences announced that the European Commission granted marketing authorization for Trodelvy as monotherapy for adult patients with unresectable or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer who have not received prior systemic therapy for metastatic disease and are not candidates for PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitor therapy. Trodelvy is the first antibody-drug conjugate approved in first-line metastatic TNBC in the European Union’s 27 member states, as well as Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein.
On June 16, Gilead Sciences also said the U.S. FDA accepted its supplemental New Drug Application for Yeztugo 300-mg tablet as a potential once-weekly oral formulation for HIV prevention as pre-exposure prophylaxis. The FDA assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act action date of February 2, 2027.
Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally.
6. 3M Company (NYSE:MMM)
On June 23, 2026, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) and Airbus signed a long-term supply agreement for the Airbus A220. Under the agreement, 3M will provide thermal and acoustic insulation solutions for the aircraft cabin. The thermal materials are intended to improve operational performance, while the acoustic insulation will be used throughout the cabin to absorb and reduce engine and airframe noise.
On June 15, Goldman Sachs reinstated coverage of 3M with a Buy rating and a $190 price target, implying 20% upside. Goldman Sachs called 3M an “intriguing self-help story,” citing improving organic growth and potential upside from liability resolution. The firm also said the shares trade at an inexpensive valuation and viewed 3M as one of the more visible self-help opportunities in the multi-industry group.
On June 10, 3M CEO Bill Brown said at the Wells Fargo Industrials and Materials Conference that orders and backlog were converting to revenue. Brown said 3M would be “solidly above 3% in Q2,” adding that the company was confident given how far it was into the quarter. Brown also cited “good progress in Q1” across about 60% of the portfolio, with general industrial or safety up mid-single digits. Brown said orders remained solid, backlog had increased further, and the quarter was “looking good,” with momentum building into the second half of the year.
3M Company (NYSE:MMM) provides diversified technology services in America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally.
While we acknowledge the potential of MMM 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 MMM and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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