10 Worst Dow Stocks To Buy According to Analysts

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4. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 169

Short Interest: 0.90%

Average Upside Potential: -1%

A new CEO, a record September quarter and a fresh iPhone lineup have given Apple momentum into the holidays. Revenue reached $114.5 billion, up 12%, and iPhone sales set a September-quarter record. Services hit an all-time high, and the installed base of active devices reached a record in every major product category and region.

Profit was strong as well. Diluted earnings per share rose 14%, and the company generated $28 billion in operating cash flow during the quarter and returned $28 billion to shareholders. Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh said fiscal 2026 capped a year of double-digit earnings growth and all-time record revenue.

Chief Executive John Ternus pointed to the lineup carrying Apple into the holiday season: the iPhone Duo, which he called the most transformational iPhone since the original, the iPhone 18 Pro models, the first Macs with touch, and an all-new Siri AI. Apple also reported a September-quarter record for iPhone upgraders worldwide, and said it gained Mac share globally. Apple also said it grew in the vast majority of the markets it tracks, with September-quarter revenue records in the Americas, Europe, Greater China and the rest of Asia Pacific.

Read our analysis on Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) here: Apple (AAPL): Can Longer iPhone Ownership Still Produce More Profit per Customer?

3. Travelers (NYSE:TRV)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50

Short Interest: 2.79%

Average Upside Potential: -3%

Underwriting discipline is paying off at Travelers. Core income reached $9.18 per diluted share in the third quarter, a core return on equity of 22.1%, and the underlying combined ratio came in at 84.1%. Underwriting results were strong across all three of the insurer’s segments.

Even with higher catastrophe losses from severe wind and hail storms, the company produced strong results, helped by favorable development on prior-year reserves and higher net investment income. New business hit a third-quarter record, which shows the insurer is still winning customers as it prices carefully, and renewal pricing remained orderly. Premiums held steady even after the sale of the Canadian operations earlier in the year, and grew when that sale is excluded. Management said retention and returns reflected excellent execution. The company reported underwriting income of $1.4 billion before taxes, and underlying underwriting income was even higher.

Cash is flowing back to owners. Travelers returned excess capital to shareholders during the quarter, including $1.5 billion of share repurchases. Chief Executive Alan Schnitzer said the results reflected very strong underwriting performance and that the momentum gives him real confidence heading into 2027 and beyond.

2. Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 66

Short Interest: 2.48%

Average Upside Potential: -5%

Seventeen Amgen products grew at least 10% in the third quarter, and the same number now run at more than $1 billion a year. Total revenue rose 8%, driven by volume growth rather than price, which points to demand for the medicines rather than a one-time boost.

Newer drugs are carrying the climb. Imdelltra, a medicine for small cell lung cancer, grew 128% from a year earlier, while Repatha and Evenity each grew by more than a third. Uplizna sales nearly tripled, and Tezspire and Blincyto also posted double-digit gains, so growth is coming from several therapeutic areas at once. Non-GAAP operating margin edged higher even as operating expenses rose, and the GAAP operating margin climbed 9.9 percentage points. The company also advanced important clinical programs during the quarter.

Profit grew faster than sales, with non-GAAP earnings per share up 14%, and the company generated $3.7 billion of free cash flow in the quarter. Chief Executive Robert Bradway said the strength of the commercial portfolio, together with important clinical advances and a promising late-stage pipeline, reinforces confidence in durable growth well into the next decade.

Our analysis on Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) is here: Amgen (AMGN) Sales Grew 10%, but Can Earnings Catch Up to the Price?

1. Nike (NYSE:NKE)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 56

Short Interest: 8.82%

Average Upside Potential: -8%

Gross margin is climbing at Nike even as sales shrink, the early sign of a turnaround that bulls are watching. Gross margin expanded 60 basis points to 42.8% in the fiscal first quarter, helped by lower warehousing and logistics costs, while selling and administrative expense fell 3%. Management said the quarter matched its expectations. Chief Executive Elliott Hill added that Nike is taking deliberate actions to strengthen Nike Sportswear, Jordan Brand and Greater China for the long term.

The company is also cutting costs on purpose. Its new operating model, called Pace, is expected to deliver about $2.5 billion in cumulative savings through fiscal 2031. Hill said the Sport Offense is producing measurable progress across priority sports, and wholesale revenue grew in North America.

Nike returned about $610 million to shareholders through dividends in the quarter, and ended it with $8.4 billion in cash and short-term investments. Chief Financial Officer Dave Denton said results were supported by the improved gross margin and disciplined cost management, and that the company will keep strengthening its product portfolio, improving productivity and allocating resources with discipline.

Read more in our analysis on Nike (NYSE:NKE) here: Is Nike’s (NKE) Turnaround Worth Betting On?

READ NEXT: BofA Turns Bearish on Nike: What’s Behind the Downgrade? and Apple Has Outperformed the S&P 500, but is AAPL’s 35x Valuation Getting Ahead of its Growth?

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