16 S&P 500 Stocks Hit 52-Week Highs On Tuesday
A list of stocks at yearly highs is dominated by one part of the market, raising questions about the quality of the run.
The Oil & Gas Exploration & Production industry placed 4 names on today’s list, followed by Oil & Gas Refining & Marketing with 3 names and Integrated Oil & Gas with 2 names. As of Tuesday, September 15, there are 16 S&P 500 stocks trading at their 52-week highs. The largest is ExxonMobil (XOM), with a market value of about $706.7 billion.
The Energy sector accounts for 9 of the 16 names, all reaching new highs while the S&P 500 has returned -2.4% over the last month. This raises a critical question: are these businesses earning their stronger prices?
The Biggest Names On The List
The table below shows the 10 largest of the 16 names, sorted by market capitalization, with returns over four windows:
| Tickers | Market Cap |
1D % Chg |
1W % Chg |
1M % Chg |
1Y % Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XOM | $706.74 Bil | 2.6% | 5.4% | 6.4% | 55.3% |
| CVX | $428.98 Bil | 2.6% | 3.8% | 9.8% | 44.1% |
| CRWD | $246.11 Bil | 3.0% | 15.5% | 11.8% | 122.4% |
| TMO | $237.96 Bil | 4.6% | 6.4% | 9.1% | 34.4% |
| VZ | $214.44 Bil | 0.3% | 2.1% | 6.1% | 25.0% |
| COP | $171.36 Bil | 3.3% | 4.6% | 12.1% | 57.6% |
| MPC | $118.73 Bil | 3.6% | 3.3% | 15.9% | 131.7% |
| VLO | $116.73 Bil | 3.7% | 3.7% | 16.2% | 158.7% |
| PSX | $106.22 Bil | 3.1% | 2.2% | 14.0% | 108.6% |
| EOG | $80.87 Bil | 3.5% | 5.8% | 7.8% | 34.6% |
The list shows a split between profitable growth and growth at a cost.
The two largest names on the list, both from the Energy sector, show expanding businesses with positive margins. ExxonMobil (XOM) trades at 21.6 times trailing earnings, and its revenue grew 9.6% over the last twelve months, and its operating margin was 10.7%. Chevron (CVX) trades at 20.8 times trailing earnings, and its revenue grew 11.2% over the last twelve months, and its operating margin was 12.4%. In contrast, CrowdStrike (CRWD) saw its revenue grow 24.3% over the last twelve months, but its operating margin was -2.2%.
A new high is a question, not an answer.
A list of stocks at their highest price of the past year is a map of what has worked. Strength often persists. But a price is not a verdict on a business. The disciplined move is to treat this list not as a set of recommendations, but as a starting point. The real work is checking whether the underlying business fundamentals justify the new, higher valuation.
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.
One more pattern worth noticing: 9 of the 16 names are Energy stocks. When a whole group is making new highs together, an energy ETF like XLE, which holds 6 of these names, is one way to own part of the group’s strength without betting on which single name leads it from here.
Chasing Highs Is A Reflex. Owning Strength Is A System
A 52-week-high list is seductive: everything on it has been going right. But buying a stock because it is at its high is buying a price, and prices revert; what persists is the quality underneath the run.
The Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio is built to own that quality before and after it makes headlines: roughly 30 businesses selected for consistent cash generation, strong margins, and resilient balance sheets, sized and rebalanced with 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. Admire the list; own the system.