Top Stocks with Highest Analyst Recommendations

As earnings season gets into full swing, we thought it appropriate to identify the major stocks that prominent Wall Street analysts currently rate the highest. We’re aware that analysts often don’t know a whole lot more than the average investor does. But at the very least, research analysts often command media attention that can make or break stocks that they cover, at least in the short-term. Here, we give you the top five S&P 500 stocks that equity analysts currently rate the highest, on average. All of these stocks have an average analyst rating of Strong Buy, or just slightly lower.
The Highest Analyst-Rated S&P 500 Stocks
The chart above shows the price action for these five stocks over the past year. On the y-axis is the price and one-year performance for each of them (as of the market close on 1/14/2019). As we can see, the five stocks are widely varied in their performance numbers. ABMD, KEYS and, to a certain extent, BSX, far outperformed over a one-year period. In contrast, GOOG and AME have been slightly negative for the year.
The Takeaway
Should we really listen to what professional analysts have to say about a stock? Of the five top-rated stocks featured here, analysts absolutely nailed three of them. But as for the two lagging picks? While they are both indeed negative for the year, at least they did marginally better than the overall market. The S&P 500 (as represented by the SPY ETF) is down over 6% for the year as of the market close on 1/14/2019.
IMPORTANT: The information above should not be construed as investment advice and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell securities. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Trading and investing in the financial markets involves substantial risk of loss, and may not be suitable for all investors.
Disclosure: At the time of this article’s publication, we have no position in any security or trade/investment mentioned, nor do we have any business relationship with any company whose stock may be mentioned.

Senior Technical Analyst at The Technicals
As a momentum stock trader, Luke focuses mostly on strong market moves. Luke has been trading the markets since the early 2000s, but still gets excited by big movers. Whether a surging large-cap tech company or meteoric penny stock, Luke tracks and trades winners. A technical analysis purist, Luke authors many of our Top Stocks & ETFs reports. Contact Luke