We recently published a list of 11 Best Breakout Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB) stands against other best breakout stocks to buy according to analysts.
Stock markets have been on edge in response to the US President’s aggressive trade war that has resulted in trade tariffs aimed at settling the trade deficit. Likewise, stocks remain on edge, with the US president ramping up attacks against the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell raising serious concerns about the central bank’s independence.
Trump has been on Powell’s neck over what he terms as laxity in cutting interest rates at a time when major central banks led by the European Central Bank and Bank of Canada have cut significantly. In posts on his social network Trust Social, Trump has always insisted that the US economy would slow unless Powell, who he has always deemed as “Mr. Too Late, a major loser,” cut rates.
The remarks come against the backdrop of major indices pulling back significantly from record highs as stocks remain under pressure across various sectors. The S&P 500 has already closed on the negative for the 3rd straight month, waiting to see if the selloff will persist. The last time the index closed negative for 4 straight months was in 2011.
While a negative, the sell-off has presented unique investment opportunities as valuations have pulled back significantly from historical highs. Likewise, the pullback has given rise to solid breakout plays as the selloff dust slowly settles. Nearly two-thirds of the S&P 500 stocks have posted first-quarter 2025 results that have topped estimates. Strong quarterly results from some of the big tech giants are helping alleviate concerns about the potential impact of Trump’s tariffs. Likewise, the solid earnings have once again eased concerns that the artificial intelligence progress has slowed amid economic turmoil triggered by the trade war.
“Few stocks are truly immune to Trump tariffs [and] trade war, but AI is a lot less impacted than investors currently believe,” said Jed Ellerbroek, portfolio manager at Argent Capital Management. “We’re early in a very steep growth curve right now, and that goes for AI infrastructure.”
China signaling it is evaluating the possibility of starting trade negotiations with the US is a positive for the markets under pressure. The remarks come at a time when the Trump administration is increasingly targeting quick wins with major trading partners. The prospects of a trade agreement between the US and China should be a catalyst to trigger a significant bounce back after months of deep sell-offs.
Our Methodology
To compile a list of 11 Best Breakout Stocks to Buy According to Analysts, we analyzed the holdings of the IBD Breakout Opportunities ETF. We then settled on 11 companies backed by solid underlying fundamentals and well poised to breakout, according to analysts, once the sell off dust in the equity markets settles. Finally, we ranked these stocks in ascending order based on analysts’ upside potential (as of May 2).
At Insider Monkey, we are obsessed with 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 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
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Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB)
Stock Upside Potential as of May 2: 70.85%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 26
Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB) is a biopharmaceutical company that is discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative products for unmet medical needs in areas like oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and infectious diseases. Its lead product includes Zejula for treating ovarian cancer, VYVGART for generalized myasthenia gravis, and NUZYRA for community-acquired bacterial pneumonia. The stock is up by about 25% for the year, outperforming the overall market and emerging as one of the best breakout stocks to buy, according to analysts.
Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB) has been in fine form, attributed to strong sales growth, financial strength, and significant progress in the development of the Zai Lab pipeline. The VYVGART franchise remains a key value driver, generating $93.6 million in net product revenue last year. Consequently, total product sales increased 49% in 2024 to $397.6 million.
Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ:ZLAB) has already set its sights on the Chinese market as it looks to unlock new revenue opportunities. The National Medical Products Administration of China is evaluating its application to widen the use of repotrectinib for patients suffering from solid tumors associated with NTRK gene fusion. The push comes on the heels of Zai Lab securing clearance for the KarXT New Drug Application in China.
Overall, ZLAB ranks 5th on our list of best breakout stocks to buy according to analysts. While we acknowledge the potential of ZLAB as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ZLAB but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
