Where The Buying Ran Strongest: 26 Large Cap Stocks At 52-Week Highs
Strength in today’s market is concentrated in some of the largest and most familiar names.
Systems Software leads today’s 52-week-high list with 4 names. In total, 26 Large Cap stocks reached their strongest price of the past year as of Tuesday, August 4. The largest company on the list is Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B), with a market value of about $1115.7 billion.
With so many established giants making new highs, the key question is whether their underlying business performance justifies these new price levels. The names below provide the starting point.
The 10 Largest, By Market Cap
- Procore Technologies Stock Rides A 8-Day Winning Streak To A 36% Gain
- PTC Stock Rides A 8-Day Winning Streak To A 25% Gain
- 36 S&P 500 Stocks Hit 52-Week Highs On Tuesday
- The 52-Week-High List: 91 Small Cap Names On Tuesday
- The 52-Week-Low List: 3 S&P 500 Names On Tuesday
- 38 Mid Cap Stocks Just Made New 52-Week Highs
The table below shows the 10 largest of the 26 names, sorted by market capitalization, with returns over four windows:
| Tickers | Market Cap |
1D % Chg |
1W % Chg |
1M % Chg |
1Y % Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRK-B | $1,115.7 Bil | 0.8% | 0.9% | 2.1% | 9.4% |
| JPM | $971.1 Bil | 1.4% | 0.1% | 5.9% | 25.9% |
| V | $668.2 Bil | 1.1% | 0.8% | 3.5% | 9.8% |
| BAC | $456.4 Bil | 0.7% | 0.4% | 5.0% | 40.8% |
| DELL | $303.3 Bil | 8.9% | 19.2% | 13.7% | 271.7% |
| PANW | $293.4 Bil | 5.5% | 14.8% | 2.5% | 111.9% |
| ANET | $239.6 Bil | 3.0% | 12.3% | 9.9% | 62.0% |
| ETN | $172.7 Bil | 1.5% | 15.1% | 7.6% | 18.0% |
| BMY | $134.3 Bil | 0.6% | 3.6% | 16.2% | 56.1% |
| FTNT | $124.3 Bil | 3.1% | 12.2% | 3.7% | 72.9% |
Dell’s high valuation is matched by its revenue growth.
Dell Technologies (DELL) stands out with a run that has pushed its valuation to 36.1 times trailing earnings. That multiple is supported by revenue that grew 38.6% over the last twelve months, with an operating margin of 8.1%. For comparison, Visa (V) also trades at a high multiple of 30.8 times trailing earnings. Its revenue grew 14.4% over the same period, but it operates with a 65.6% operating margin.
A 52-week high is a starting point for research, not a conclusion.
A list of stocks at their yearly highs shows where the market’s conviction currently lies. Strength can persist. But a price is just a price, not a final verdict on a company’s value. The disciplined next step is to examine the business fundamentals to determine if the performance truly earns the price.
Before chasing any name on this list, ask what the company itself expects next. Our Guidance Momentum screen surfaces the stocks whose managements just raised their own outlooks, which is the momentum that tends to have staying power.
Strength Is A Clue. It Is Not A Plan
A stock at its 52-week high has momentum on its side, and momentum is a real force. It is also the most crowded signal in the market, and the difference between a run that lasts and one that tops is always the business underneath.
Checking that business, across thousands of names, is how the Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio is assembled: roughly 30 companies that pass the quality screens, rebalanced on rules. It has a track record of outpacing a benchmark that combines the three major indices – the S&P 500, S&P Mid-cap, and Russell 2000. Let the highs point; let the discipline decide.