11 S&P 500 Stocks Hit 52-Week Highs On Friday
A handful of large-cap names are hitting new highs even as the broader market dips.
While the S&P 500 has returned -1.1% over the last month, some of its largest components are moving in the opposite direction. As of Friday, September 11, 11 S&P 500 stocks are trading at their 52-week highs.
The group includes giants like Chevron, with a market value of about $421.7 billion, and names with sharp recent gains, such as Dell Technologies, up 17.1% over the last month. This raises a core question: what kind of business fundamentals are earning these new highs?
The 10 Largest, By Market Cap
The table below shows the 10 largest of the 11 names, sorted by market capitalization, with returns over four windows:
| Tickers | Market Cap |
1D % Chg |
1W % Chg |
1M % Chg |
1Y % Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVX | $421.67 Bil | 0.6% | 1.3% | 9.8% | 41.0% |
| DELL | $368.17 Bil | 12.0% | 9.9% | 17.1% | 361.6% |
| VZ | $210.94 Bil | 1.3% | 0.0% | 7.7% | 24.3% |
| COP | $166.67 Bil | 0.2% | 1.2% | 8.6% | 50.2% |
| VLO | $114.78 Bil | 1.3% | 5.3% | 18.2% | 151.5% |
| HPE | $82.89 Bil | 12.4% | 14.1% | 5.6% | 159.3% |
| HUM | $49.2 Bil | 2.3% | 0.8% | 5.4% | 52.0% |
| HPQ | $32.71 Bil | 8.4% | 12.2% | 22.4% | 31.4% |
| EXPD | $25.22 Bil | 1.7% | 2.9% | 4.4% | 60.4% |
| BBY | $19.1 Bil | 3.1% | 3.8% | 9.4% | 25.1% |
Is every new high built on growth?
Not always, and the contrast between two names on the list is stark. Dell Technologies (DELL) trades at 32.2 times trailing earnings, and its revenue grew 49.0% over the last twelve months, and its operating margin was 9.6%.
In the same group is Verizon Communications (VZ), which trades at 13.0 times trailing earnings, and its revenue grew 1.4% over the last twelve months, and its operating margin was 20.5%. Both stocks are at their highest price of the past year, but the businesses underneath tell very different stories about expansion and profitability.
A 52-week high is a question, not a verdict.
While stocks showing strength often continue to do so, a new high is simply a price point. It reflects the market’s current view, but it does not guarantee the business itself is performing at its peak.
The disciplined step for any name on this list is to look past the price and check the underlying fundamentals. The price is what you pay; the business is what you own.
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.
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 what separates a run that lasts from one that tops is usually 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 S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400, and the Russell 2000. Let the highs point; let the discipline decide.