In this article, we will look at the 12 Most Profitable Stocks to Invest In.
Profitable stocks are getting more attention as investors focus on companies that can keep producing earnings even when rates, costs, and demand trends shift. The screen is about identifying businesses with strong profitability metrics, efficient capital use, and durable earnings.
Invesco says the quality factor typically focuses on “companies that are highly profitable, carry low levels of debt, and generate stable earnings,” characteristics that can be “more resilient during periods of economic stress or rising inflation.” MFS adds that the long-term case for quality rests on “disciplined capital allocation, resilient earnings power, and balance sheet strength,” while warning that “Profitability is necessary but not sufficient.” AllianceBernstein makes the same point from another angle, saying “not all earnings are created equal” and that “Economic profits are the most important guide for equity investors.” In summary, the more profitable stocks are not just making money today. They are using capital efficiently and showing that earnings can last.
Against this backdrop, the most profitable stocks deserve a closer look. With that in mind, let us now take a look at the 12 Most Profitable Stocks to Invest In.
Our Methodology
We used the Finviz screener to identify stocks that have a return on equity (ROE) of at least 20% and a net profit margin of over 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. 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).
12. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)
On May 25, 2026, Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) announced positive Phase 1b Heart-2 study results for Verve-102, an investigational in vivo base editing medicine designed to durably turn off the PCSK9 gene in the liver and lower blood low-density lipoprotein cholesterol after a single infusion. In an interim analysis of 35 participants, one dose of Verve-102 produced dose-dependent mean PCSK9 reductions ranging from 51% to 88%, from the 0.3 mg/kg dose to the 1.0 mg/kg dose. Corresponding mean LDL-C reductions were 9%, 44%, 45%, 33%, 51%, and 62%, with durability observed for up to 18 months after treatment.
On May 21, 2026, Wolfe Research said Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) reported pivotal Phase 3 results for retatrutide showing “class-leading” weight loss of up to 26.1% at 80 weeks and over 30% at 104 weeks in higher-BMI participants. Wolfe said the data also showed broad improvements in key cardiometabolic risk markers, further strengthening Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 franchise leadership and obesity therapeutics profile. Wolfe maintained an Outperform rating and a $1,350 price target on the shares.
Meanwhile, RBC Capital maintained an Outperform rating and a $1,250 price target on Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY). RBC said the retatrutide Phase 3 trial was a clean win, citing a clean safety profile and best-in-class efficacy across all doses. RBC said it is modeling a retatrutide launch in 2027, 2030 sales of $4.9B, and 2034 sales of $11.0B with a 70% probability of success.
Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) discovers, develops, manufactures, and markets human pharmaceutical products internationally.
11. Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN)
On May 25, 2026, BofA raised the firm’s price target on Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) to $370 from $320 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares. BofA said the company’s multi-year content gains still appear underappreciated, while its core industrial and auto markets “have finally turned the corner” from headwinds to cyclical tailwinds. The firm also cited “transformative” growth in AI data.
On May 22, 2026, Seaport Research analyst Jay Goldberg upgraded Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) to Buy from Neutral with a $400 price target. Goldberg said rising data center power consumption and higher electrical intensity per rack are driving a redesign of in-data-center power distribution systems, creating a growth opportunity for power analog semiconductors and potentially improving the sector’s margin profile.
Last month, Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) reported Q1 EPS of $1.68, ahead of the consensus estimate of $1.36. Revenue totaled $4.83B, above the consensus estimate of $4.53B. For Q2, Texas Instruments expects EPS of $1.77-$2.05, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.58, and revenue of $5B-$5.4B, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.87B.
Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) designs, manufactures, and sells semiconductors to electronics designers and manufacturers internationally.
10. Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)
On May 22, 2026, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Hepcludex injection, granted to Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD), to treat chronic hepatitis delta virus infection in adults without cirrhosis or with compensated cirrhosis. The FDA said bulevirtide is the first FDA-approved treatment for chronic HDV infection. Wendy Carter, Acting Director of the Office of Infectious Diseases in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said the approval fills a “critical gap in care” for patients who previously had no FDA-approved therapies.
On May 21, 2026, Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) completed its previously announced acquisition of Tubulis GmbH, a private Germany-based, clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation antibody-drug conjugates. The acquisition adds Tubulis’ ADC assets and platform to Gilead, including TUB-040, a NaPi2b-directed topoisomerase-I inhibitor ADC, and TUB-030, a 5T4-directed ADC. Under the agreement, Gilead acquired all outstanding equity of Tubulis for $3.15B upfront on a cash-free, debt-free basis, with up to $1.85B in contingent milestone payments. The Tubulis team will remain in Munich, Germany, where the Tubulis ADC Innovation Center will be established.
A day earlier, Maxim analyst Michael Okunewitch upgraded Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) to Buy from Hold with a $165 price target. Okunewitch said base business growth is expected to reach 5%-6%, above the prior expectation of 4%-5%. Maxim also cited the growth potential of Yeztugo in PREP, Trodelvy in first-line breast cancer, and continued dominance in HIV treatment, while noting that the stock’s pullback from all-time highs leaves its 15.1-times expected 2026 EPS multiple in line with biopharma peers.
Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines for areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally.
9. Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX)
On May 19, 2026, Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) announced a joint venture with Google to create a new U.S.-based company offering data center capacity, operations, networking, and Google Cloud’s tensor processing units, or TPUs, as a compute-as-a-service offering. The new company will give customers another way to access cloud TPUs outside Google Cloud. Under the partnership, Blackstone is making an initial $5B equity capital commitment from funds it manages. The company expects the first 500 MW of capacity to come online in 2027, with plans to scale over time. Blackstone named Benjamin Treynor Sloss, a Google executive with more than two decades of infrastructure and operations experience, as CEO of the new company.
On May 18, 2026, TD Cowen lowered the firm’s price target on Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) to $133 from $140 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares. TD Cowen updated models across the alternative asset manager group following Q1 reports, saying the sector’s long-term earnings power continues to climb, but current earnings quality remains low.
On May 11, 2026, Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) announced that funds managed by its private equity business agreed to acquire a majority stake in Skroutz from CVC Capital Partners Fund VII. Skroutz is an online marketplace in Greece with more than 12 million products from approximately 9,000 merchants and around 2.5 million active users. The company said Skroutz’s founders will sell part of their shareholding but retain a stake and continue leading the business, with George Chatzigeorgiou remaining CEO. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) is an alternative asset management firm focused on private equity, venture capital, real estate, hedge fund solutions, credit, secondary funds, public debt and equity, and multi-asset strategies.
8. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)
On May 21, 2026, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) announced that Health Canada accepted for review a New Drug Submission for suzetrigine for the treatment of moderate-to-severe acute pain in adults. Vertex said suzetrigine is a selective NaV1.8 pain signal inhibitor and represents a new class of oral pain medicine that is not an opioid or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. If approved, suzetrigine could become the first new class of medicine in Canada to treat acute pain in more than twenty years.
On May 5, 2026, RBC Capital analyst Brian Abrahams raised the firm’s price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) to $543 from $541 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares. Abrahams said the stock had been weak recently due to perceptions of higher risk around the near-term catalyst path, but that decent Q1 results, operational confidence for the rest of 2026, and reaffirmation of “pove’s clean safety” were a good start toward clearing overhangs.
Earlier in May, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) reported Q1 EPS of $4.02, versus the consensus estimate of $4.31. Revenue totaled $2.99B, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.00B. CEO and President Reshma Kewalramani said Vertex was off to a “strong start” in 2026, driven by cystic fibrosis leadership, growth in sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, and acute pain, and rapid pipeline progress. Kewalramani added that CASGEVY and JOURNAVX delivered more than 25% of the company’s growth during the quarter.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) operates as a biotechnology company in the United States, Europe, and internationally.
7. The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)
On May 20, 2026, Morgan Stanley raised the firm’s price target on The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) to $98 from $90 previously and maintained an Overweight rating on the shares.
Scotiabank analyst Brandon Bingham also raised the firm’s price target on The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) to $86 from $85 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares. Bingham said the Q1 reporting period showed midstream companies’ capacity and ability to capture outsized earnings during periods of turbulence and shock. Similarly, UBS analyst Manav Gupta raised the firm’s price target on The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) to $91 from $89 and maintained a Buy rating. Gupta said Williams continues to grow its business at a pace that exceeds expectations and cited potential EBITDA upside of $1.93B by 2029 from projects including Socrates, Atlas, Apollo, Aquila, Socrates the Younger, and Neo.
On May 4, 2026, The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) reported Q1 EPS of 73c, ahead of the consensus estimate of 62c. Revenue totaled $3.03B, below the consensus estimate of $3.27B. President and CEO Chad Zamarin said Williams delivered a “strong first quarter,” supported by its natural gas-focused strategy and premier assets. Zamarin added that first-quarter GAAP net income increased 25% year-over-year to $864 million, while adjusted EBITDA grew 13% year-over-year to $2.254 billion, driven by Transco expansion projects, new Gulf volumes, higher storage revenues, and higher gathering volumes in the West.
The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) operates as an energy infrastructure company primarily in the United States.
6. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
On May 24, 2026, Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Technology chief Andrew Bosworth was reportedly working to transform the company’s workforce using AI, according to The Wall Street Journal’s Meghan Bobrowsky. In a companywide memo, Bosworth said Meta aims for agents to primarily do the work, while employees “direct, review and help them improve.” Bosworth also wrote that some tasks that once took hours now take minutes, and that employees may eventually not need to remain in the loop for some tasks.
Earlier, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg told employees that no further company-wide layoffs are expected this year after Meta cut 10% of its global workforce and reassigned 7,000 employees to artificial intelligence teams, Reuters’ Katie Paul reported, citing a memo seen by the publication.
On May 20, 2026, Wells Fargo analyst Ken Gawrelski lowered the firm’s price target on Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) to $765 from $770 and maintained an Overweight rating on the shares. Wells Fargo said market confidence is improving in companies monetizing compute investments directly through cloud businesses.
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) develops products that help people connect and share through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality headsets, and AI glasses internationally.
While we acknowledge the potential of META 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 META and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
Click to continue reading and see the 5 Most Profitable Stocks to Invest In.
Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.
