7 Large Cap Stocks Just Made New 52-Week Highs
As of Monday, October 19, there are 7 Large Cap US and Canada-listed stocks in the Trefis coverage universe trading at their 52-week highs. Large Cap here means a market value above $40 billion.
Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B), with a market value of about $1.15 trillion, is the largest company on the list; its stock is up 4.4% over the past month and up 8.9% over the past year. By sector, Health Care leads the list with 3 of the 7 names. For context, the S&P 500 is up 0.6% over the past month, including dividends.
The Full List, Largest First
Here are all 7 names, sorted by market capitalization, with returns over four windows:
| Tickers | Market Cap |
1D Return |
1W Return |
1M Return |
1Y Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRK-B | $1,146.8 Bil | 0.0% | 2.8% | 4.4% | 8.9% |
| V | $757.8 Bil | 0.1% | 3.5% | 9.4% | 21.1% |
| MCK | $119.9 Bil | 0.6% | 5.7% | 15.5% | 30.8% |
| CNQ | $112.5 Bil | 0.6% | 7.2% | 9.0% | 86.7% |
| ELV | $93.4 Bil | 0.5% | 1.9% | 4.7% | 26.0% |
| SU | $92.4 Bil | 0.4% | 6.6% | 12.9% | 109.5% |
| VEEV | $51.4 Bil | 2.1% | 7.1% | 21.7% | 8.2% |
The Businesses Behind The Largest New Highs
Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) trades at 13.4 times trailing earnings and grew revenue 10.4% over the last twelve months.
Visa (V) trades at 33.5 times trailing earnings, grew revenue 14.4% over the last twelve months and earned an operating margin of 65.6%.
Across the list, one-month moves range from +4.4% for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) to +21.7% for Veeva Systems (VEEV).
Over the past year, the median name here is up 26.0%.
5 of the 7 names are also S&P 500 members.
A new high tells you what the market already believes. The harder question is which of these runs management itself is underwriting. Our Guidance Momentum screen tracks exactly that: stocks where the company raised its own forward numbers.
One more pattern worth noticing: 3 of the 7 names are Health Care stocks. When a whole group is making new highs together, a health care ETF like XLV, which holds 3 of the 3 largest of them, is one way to own part of the group’s strength without betting on which single name leads it from here.
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.