Nasdaq NVDA Nvidia

Among investors looking to get a piece of the action in the artificial intelligence (AI) gold rush, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has a top spot on nearly everyone's list. The graphics processing unit (GPU) powerhouse offers the most powerful products in their niche, and those chips are

There's a compelling argument that 2023 might be the year that artificial intelligence (AI) finally hits the mainstream. Recent advances in the field of generative AI have resulted in AI systems that can summarize text, write poems, successfully complete complicated tests, and ev

Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) is spearheading the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution. The company's highly advanced processors are helping to power top AI applications, including ChatGPT, Dall-E, and Stable Diffusion, and surging demand for its products has also powered big gains fo

Technology stocks rebounded strongly in 2023, delivering solid returns on a year-to-date basis. Taking advantage of this price appreciation, corporate insiders sold shares of ( NASDAQ:NVDA ), Apple ( NASDAQ:AAPL ), Microsoft ( NASDAQ:MSFT ), and Meta ( NASDAQ:META ), according to our  Insiders Trading Activity tool.  Before we move ahead, it is important to highlight that insider selling of stocks does not always indicate a bad sign. However, keeping a tab on insiders’ activities can help retail investors make informed investment decisions.  Coming back to tech stocks, the recent rally has already raised concerns about the valuation and the possibility of a downturn or a correction, especially amid a weak macro backdrop. Several top investment firms, including Morgan Stanley, have  warned of a sharp pullback in shares of technology companies.  Whether tech stocks could witness a correction remains a wait-and-see story. However, retail investors should take caution due to recent insider selling, notable price appreciation, and warnings from market pundits.  Against this backdrop, let’s look at what TipRanks’ Insider Trading Activity tool indicates about these stocks.  What is the Prediction for Nvidia Stock? Nvidia stock has gained about 164% year-to-date on the back of solid demand for its  AI (Artificial Intelligence)-led chips. Our data shows that four insiders made five Sell transactions in NVDA stock. Meanwhile, three insiders sold shares of Nvidia in June. Harvey Jones, director at Nvidia, recently sold shares worth 28.43M. Overall, corporate Insiders sold NVDA shares worth $70.7M in the last three months. Further, the stock has a negative signal from insiders. Nonetheless, Wall Street analysts are bullish about  NVDA stock. It has received 32 Buy and four Hold recommendations for a Strong Buy consensus rating. Meanwhile, analysts’ average price target of $449.92 implies 16.83% upside potential.  Is AAPL a Good Stock to Buy Right Now? Like NVDA, insiders sold AAPL stock in the last three months. Per the  Insider Trading Activity tool, six insiders sold AAPL stock in 12 transactions in May 2023. Additionally, it is worth mentioning that three insiders have conducted sell transactions thus far in June. Overall, insiders sold AAPL shares worth $709K in the past three months, with  Chris Kondo, its Senior Director of Corporate Accounting, selling shares of an estimated value of $708.98K last month. While  Apple stock has a negative signal from insiders, it commands a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 23 Buy, six Hold, and one Sell recommendations. Analysts’ average price target of $186.53 implies 3.3% upside potential from current levels. Is Microsoft a Buy, Sell, or Hold? Insiders sold MSFT shares worth $15.6M in the last quarter.  Three insiders sold MSFT stock in seven transactions in May 2023. Further, two insiders have made three sell transactions so far in June. MSFT has a negative call from our Insider Trading Activity tool.  While insiders reduced their exposure to  MSFT stock, Wall Street analysts maintain their bullish view. It has received 30 Buy, four Hold, and one Sell recommendations for a Strong Buy consensus rating. Further, these analysts’ average price target of $344.30 implies 5.6% upside potential.  What is the Price Target for Meta?  Meta Platforms stock, which has gained about 120% year-to-date, also has a negative signal from insiders. Per the  Insider Trading Activity tool, six insiders sold META stock in 12 transactions in May 2023. Meanwhile, its CTO, Andrew Bosworth, sold META stock worth 71.94K.  Overall, insiders sold META shares worth $8.9M in the past three months.  While  META stock has a negative signal from insiders, it has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 38 Buy and five Hold. Analysts’ average price target of $287.32 implies 8.6% upside potential from current levels.      Disclosure   

Artificial intelligence (AI) is already having a profound impact on the world. It's also having a profound impact on the stock market.

U.S. stocks have defied fears of a recession, a banking crisis and soaring Treasury yields to rise 20% from their October lows - one definition of a bull market.

If you feel like everything has become increasingly political in the United States in recent years, you probably aren’t alone. Now, even investing is, in some ways, becoming political. Many consumers expect brands to have a stance on polarizing issues, and an increasing number of ETFs have been launched in recent years with the intent of allowing people to invest in companies that they believe are aligned with their political viewpoints (i.e., Republican or Democratic). Whether this is a good or bad idea, or good or bad for the country, is a topic I will leave for the reader to decide. For now, let’s take a look at two such ETFs, each representing an opposing side of the aisle -- the Point Bridge GOP Stock Tracker ETF ( BATS:MAGA) and the Democratic Large Cap Core ETF ( NASDAQ:DEMZ) .  Two Sides of the Same Coin These ETFs ostensibly exist to enable investors to invest based on their political viewpoints, but what does that mean in practice?  Point Bridge Capital says that it “allows you to invest in companies that align with your Republican political beliefs.” It does this by investing in up to 150 S&P 500 ( SPX ) companies “whose employees and political action committees (PACs) are highly supportive of Republican candidates.” The holdings are equally weighted so that smaller S&P 500 companies are not crowded out by the largest companies.  What does this look like on the ground? MAGA owns 150 stocks, none of which have more than a 1% weighting, so this is actually a very diversified fund. Its top 10 holdings make up a minuscule 8.4% of assets. Below, you’ll find an overview of MAGA’s top 10 holdings using TipRanks’ holdings tool. Holdings come from across a wide array of industries. For example, the nominal top holding is pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly ( NYSE:LLY ), while homebuilder Pultegroup ( NYSE:PHM ), cruise line operator Carnival Corporation ( NYSE:CCL ), car auction company Copart ( NASDAQ:CPRT ), and alcoholic beverage maker Molson Coors Brewing ( NYSE:TAP ) round out the rest of the top five. In part, because it is equal-weighted, one interesting thing about MAGA is that it has a low weighting towards technology stocks compared to the S&P 500 and many broad-market ETFs. Meanwhile, DEMZ, which is an ETF from Reflection Asset Management, invests in S&P 500 companies that have made 75% of their contributions to Democratic causes and candidates. This results in an ETF with 47 holdings, where the top 10 holdings make up 42.2% of the fund. As you can see from the overview below, DEMZ skews more towards the tech sector than MAGA does, with a relatively large 5.4% stake in Apple ( NASDAQ:AAPL ) and top 10 positions in IBM ( NYSE:IBM ) and Nvidia ( NASDAQ:NVDA ). Also, those who have followed the ongoing battle between Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis and Disney ( NYSE:DIS ) will probably not be surprised to find that Disney is one of the ETF’s top 10 holdings. Note that DEMZ is not an equal-weighted ETF like MAGA. How Have These ETFs Performed? Essentially, both ETFs use the same strategy to screen for companies that donate to political candidates or causes on opposite ends of the aisle. The process is similar, but the end result obviously ends with a different set of holdings. So, what type of results have these strategies provided for investors?  As of the end of May, MAGA had a one-year total return of -8.9% (although, keep in mind that the S&P 500 was in a bear market last year, so this result isn’t as bad as it may sound. Zooming out to a three-year time frame, MAGA has produced solid 16.6% annualized total returns for its holders. However, over a five-year time horizon, these results drop down to a 7.5% annual return. Meanwhile, DEMZ only launched in 2020, so it doesn’t have an extensive track record, but it had a 10.5% total annualized return since inception as of the end of the most recent quarter.  Mind the Fees These performances are solid enough (more on this later), but one thing that investors should be aware of is that both of these ETFs have fairly high expense ratios. DEMZ has a 0.45% expense ratio, while MAGA has an ever higher 0.72% expense ratio. Closing Thoughts These two ETFs are opposed in terms of their political ideologies, but they employ similar approaches toward stock selection. Both have put up fair results over the last few years, but this brings up a bigger point. While the ETFs take fairly complex, novel approaches, investors may be better off just investing in a broad-market S&P 500 or Nasdaq ( NDX ) ETF with lower fees. Remember that both of these ETFs are screening for S&P 500 stocks as a starting point, and MAGA contains nearly one-third of the S&P 500 in its portfolio.  Let’s say that you ignored the political noise and simply invested in the largest S&P 500 ETF, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF ( NYSEARCA:VOO) , or the largest Nasdaq ETF, the Invesco QQQ Trust ( NASDAQ:QQQ) instead of MAGA or DEMZ. These ETFs have much lower expense ratios of 0.03% and 0.2%, respectively. VOO’s expense ratio is orders of magnitude cheaper than that of MAGA or DEMZ, while QQQ’s isn’t as low but is still considerably cheaper. In year one, an investor putting $10,000 into one of these ETFs would pay just $3 in fees with VOO or $20 in QQQ versus $45 with DEMZ or $72 with MAGA. Over time, these fees can compound and make a real difference to your overall portfolio as an investor. Beyond the fees, VOO has a solid performance track record. While it has lagged MAGA on a three-year basis with a 12.8% annualized return, it has outperformed it over a five-year timeframe with an 11% annualized return. Meanwhile, as of the end of the most recent quarter, QQQ had a three-year return of 19.8% and a five-year total annualized return of 15.7%, easily beating the competition. Note that DEMZ has not been around for long enough to compile a three-year or five-year track record. It's also important to note that both of these ETFs are minnows in the bigger investing picture -- MAGA has $18.7 million in assets under management, while DEMZ has $23.5 million. If, as an investor, it is truly important to you to invest in companies that donate to candidates from your side of the aisle, then these ETFs could theoretically warrant a place in your portfolio. They could also potentially be interesting as a vehicle for traders who want to use them as a way to bet on the outcomes of elections or certain legislation passing. But beyond that, it seems like most investors would likely be better off keeping it simple via a broad-market fund like QQQ or VOO instead of making their financial futures political.  Disclosure

Intel ( NASDAQ:INTC ) stock seems to be stuck in neutral, but a new focus on artificial intelligence (AI) chips could help the company regain favor among analysts and investors. I am bullish on Intel stock, but be prepared to hunker down for a multi-year buy-and-hold strategy, as Intel's AI chip rollout will take a while. Intel was once America's undisputed leader among chipmakers. Lately, however, Intel has lost market share to rival Advanced Micro Devices ( NASDAQ:AMD ). Plus, Nvidia ( NASDAQ:NVDA ) is 2023's market darling among chip manufacturers. Consequently, INTC stock has been range-bound all year, while other semiconductor stocks have broken out to the upside. Furthermore, as we'll see, analysts are generally lukewarm on Intel. Still, an argument can be made that Intel will have its time in the limelight again, though probably not in the near term. Intel Practically Throws in the Towel on Mobileye, Focuses on AI As the old saying goes, it's better late than never. Intel ventured far afield of its core chipmaking business when the company invested in self-driving technology specialist Mobileye Global ( NASDAQ:MBLY ). Evidently, the results haven't been stellar, so Intel has wisely decided to sell a substantial portion of the company's stake in Mobileye. This should provide Intel with a capital infusion, but more importantly, it will enable Intel to focus on more high-confidence pursuits. Among those pursuits is developing chips that can accommodate the intense computational power needs of AI applications. This year, investors are enamored with Nvidia because the company has touted itself as a best-in-class manufacturer of graphics processing units (GPUs) for generative AI and other machine learning use cases. It took a while, but Intel finally threw its hat into the AI ring and started giving the market what it wants. Not long ago, Intel shared its "portfolio of future [high-performance computing] and AI products," notably including Intel's Data Center GPU Max microprocessor series. In addition, according to Reuters, Intel recently "provided a handful of new details on a chip for artificial intelligence (AI) computing it plans to introduce in 2025." Intel's Surprising Potential Partnership with Nvidia Now, I can hear the skeptics saying that 2025 is a long way away. That's a fair point, and INTC stockholders will need to be patient, as it will take a while for Intel to develop its new AI-ready hardware. However, it's encouraging that Intel could actually end up working with an industry rival that's a favorite among today's financial traders. I'm referring to Nvidia, which (believe it or not) actually praised Intel's test chips not long ago. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang reportedly said, "We’re open to manufacturing with Intel. And [Intel CEO] Pat [Gelsinger] has said in the past that we’re evaluating their process, and we’ve recently received the test chip results of their next generation process and the results look good." It would be a win-win for both companies' shareholders if Nvidia, the current AI hardware favorite on Wall Street, sourced components from Intel. Nvidia wouldn't have to rely on Taiwan Semiconductor ( NYSE:TSM ) as much, and Intel would gain a major customer and, in effect, a stamp of approval from a very popular company. However, these things take time, and INTC stock investors should maintain a multi-year time horizon, as these developments will likely play out over a span of years, not months. Is INTC Stock a Buy, According to Analysts? It looks like Wall Street has a fairly neutral outlook on Intel. On TipRanks, INTC stock comes in as a Hold based on five Buys, 17 Holds, and four Sell ratings. The average Intel stock price target is $30.84, implying 3.1% downside potential. If you’re wondering which analyst you should follow if you want to buy and sell INTC stock, the most profitable analyst covering the stock (on a one-year timeframe) is Toshiya Hari of Goldman Sachs ( NYSE:GS ), with an average return of 8.41% per rating and a 59% success rate. Click on the image below to learn more. Conclusion: Should You Consider Intel Stock? I'm bullish on Intel stock, but it's not right for every investor. The market isn't likely to flip bullish on Intel this year, and 2024 might also frustrate short-term shareholders. On the other hand, patient long-term investors should take a look at INTC stock. Intel is finally moving aggressively into the AI-focused hardware space, and if there's a partnership with Nvidia, Intel could be a favorite among tech traders someday. Disclosure

The S&P 500 hit bull market territory this week from October lows, carried by a small number of mega-cap companies. Investors with an eye toward the concentration risk within broad equity exposure should consider managed futures for their low correlations to stocks and bonds. Many of the strongest-performing companies this year are tech companies. The [...] Read more at ETFtrends.com.

S&P 500 advanced on Thursday, putting the benchmark index up 20% from its Oct. 12 closing low and heralding the start of a new bull market, at least by the definition of some market participants.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday regaining some of their momentum thanks to a rebound by technology stocks, while volatility dropped to record lows ahead of an eventful economic and policy calendar next week.

S&P 500 advanced on Thursday, putting the benchmark index up 20% from its October 12 closing low and heralding the start of a new bull market, at least by the definition of some market participants.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday regaining some of their momentum thanks to a rebound by technology stocks, while volatility dropped to record lows ahead of an eventful economic and policy calendar next week.

Cohere, an AI foundation model company that competes with Microsoft-backed OpenAI, said on Thursday it had raised $270 million in a funding round from investors including Nvidia, Oracle and Salesforce Ventures.

ChatGPT and AI seem to be everywhere these days, but what do they really mean for asset management and financial advisors? Does AI arrive as just a theme, or can it really have an immediate impact on financial advisors’ work? On Wednesday, VettaFi’s Dave Nadig hosted a webcast on AI titled “Beyond Chat: How AI [...] Read more at ETFtrends.com.

The stock market moved sharply higher on Thursday, with the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) picking up more than 1% shortly after noon. Despite lingering concerns about the state of the economy and the likely response of policymakers toward interest rates, investors appeare

Apple ( NASDAQ:AAPL ) stock is off to a gain of over 40% year-to-date, and it has a coveted 'Perfect 10' TipRanks Smart Score. Excitement about the company’s newly-unveiled VR headset is starting to build. Even Warren Buffett is a fan of the stock. Apple has been Berkshire Hathaway’s ( NYSE:BRK.B ) largest position for a long time. In fact, after its 2023 run-up, it currently accounts for nearly half of Berkshire’s equity portfolio. Investors looking to invest in Apple through ETFs are in luck because Apple is the largest company in the world by market cap (with a $2.8 trillion valuation), and it isn’t hard to find ETFs with a large position in it. Therefore, without further ado, here are three of the top ETFs with Apple stock exposure. 1. Vanguard Information Technology ETF (NYSEARCA:VGT) Apple is the VGT ETF's top holding with a massive 23.5% weighting. Vanguard funds are known for their diversification, and aside from this large Apple position, VGT is no different. The $51.3 billion ETF holds 366 positions. Because it is a market-weighted ETF and Apple is the largest position in the index VGT tracks (the MSCI U.S. Investable Market Index (IMI)/Information Technology 20/50), Apple rises to the top with this large allocation. Including Apple, VGT’s top 10 holdings account for 63.9% of the fund. Below, you’ll find an overview of VGT’s top holdings using TipRanks’ holdings tool. VGT’s underlying index is comprised of companies within the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) information technology sector, which includes software and IT services companies as well as makers and distributors of technology hardware such as semiconductors, cell phones, and computers. Therefore, it’s no surprise to see plenty of familiar mega-cap technology names within VGT’s top 10, whether it’s Apple, Microsoft ( NASDAQ:MSFT ), or Nvidia ( NASDAQ:NVDA ).  You may be surprised to find payment network giants like Visa ( NYSE:V ) and Mastercard ( NYSE:MA ) coming in as the number four and five positions in a technology ETF, but note these are also fintech companies pushing innovation in the finance space.  In the chart above, you’ll see plenty of bright green Smart Scores. The Smart Score is TipRanks’ proprietary quantitative stock scoring system that evaluates stocks on eight different market factors. The result is data-driven and does not require any human intervention. A Smart Score of 8 or above is the equivalent of an Outperform rating. As you can see, VGT impresses in this department as nine of its top 10 holdings have Outperform-equivalent ratings. Furthermore, VGT itself features an ETF Smart Score of 8 out of 10. VGT has been a strong performer over the years, and it is currently up 32% year-to-date. It has returned 16.5% over the past year, 17.8% annualized over a three-year time frame, and 19.1% annualized on a five-year basis. Further, VGT has returned 19.8% (annualized) over the past decade, and it’s hard not to be happy with that type of long-term return.  Another nice thing about VGT is its low fees. The ETF has an expense ratio of just 0.1%, meaning that an investor who puts $10,000 into the ETF will only pay $10 in fees in a year. Is VGT Stock a Buy, According to Analysts? Analysts are fairly positive on VGT, assigning it a Moderate Buy consensus rating. The average VGT stock price target of $456.65 implies upside potential of 9.04% from current levels. 2. Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA:XLK) Like VGT, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund is a low-fee, index-based fund investing in the technology sector. In XLK’s case, it invests in the technology sector of the S&P 500 ( SPX ). Similar to VGT, Apple has a massive position here with its 22.9% weighting, although it’s not XLK’s largest holding. That honor belongs to Microsoft, which edges Apple out for the top spot with a 24.3% weighting. XLK holds far fewer stocks than VGT. It currently holds 65 stocks, and its top 10 holdings make up 71.6% of the fund. See below for an overview of XLK’s top holdings. You’ll notice that beyond Apple and Microsoft, XLK and VGT share many of the same top holdings. One notable difference is that while VGT owns large positions in Visa and Mastercard, these stocks are not found in XLK as they are not part of the S&P 500 technology sector -- they are part of the S&P 500 financial sector and can thus be found in the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( NYSEARCA:XLF) .  As with VGT, you’ll find plenty of great Smart Scores here -- 8 out of XLK’s top 10 holdings feature Smart Scores of 8 or better, and XLK itself boasts a strong ETF Smart Score of 8 out of 10. XLK offers the same investor-friendly expense ratio as VGT (0.1%), and it also boasts a great track record of long-term performance like VGT. XLK is up 33% year-to-date, and it returned 7.7% over the past year. It has been very consistent on an annualized basis, with total returns of 19.2% annualized over the past three years, 19.5% annualized over a five-year time frame, and 18.9% over the past decade. These are the types of results that help investors to build wealth over the long run.   Is XLK Stock a Buy, According to Analysts? The consensus analyst view on XLK is fairly similar to that of VGT -- a Moderate Buy rating with an average XLK stock price target of $175.67, implying upside potential of 6.8%. 3. Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) Lastly, the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF has become synonymous with technology stocks over the years, so it’s no surprise that it has a large Apple position. At 12.1%, QQQ’s Apple weighting is smaller than that of VGT’s or XLK’s, but this is still a sizable position in the grand scheme of things. Microsoft is ahead of Apple by a narrow margin with a 13.2% weighting. Check out the table below for a look at QQQ’s top holdings.  Because QQQ's underlying index is the Nasdaq 100 ( NDX ), you’ll find that this list is dominated by the mega-cap tech names like Microsoft, Apple, Amazon ( NASDAQ:AMZN ), Nvidia, Meta Platforms ( NASDAQ:META ) and Alphabet ( NASDAQ:GOOGL ) ( NASDAQ:GOOG ) that the Nasdaq is known for.   You may notice that names like Amazon and Tesla ( NASDAQ:TSLA ) are included here but absent from XLK, as it considers them to be consumer stocks. These stocks are not found in VGT’s underlying index either.  Pepsi ( NASDAQ:PEP ) is a notable outlier here, as it is clearly not a tech stock, but it is one of the largest stocks on the Nasdaq 100, so it makes the cut. QQQ comes in a bit behind XLK and VGT in that six of its top 10 holdings have Smart Scores of 8 or above (as opposed to nine out of 10 for XLK and eight out of 10 for VGT). Nonetheless, QQQ itself features a strong ETF Smart Score of 8. QQQ's expense ratio is higher than that of VGT or XLK at 0.2%, but this is still an investor-friendly expense ratio, and it is still a lower fee than you will find with many other ETFs out there. Like the other two funds discussed here, QQQ is another long-term winner. As of the end of the most recent quarter, the Nasdaq-focused ETF has returned 32% year-to-date. Moreover, it has posted annualized total returns of 19.8% over the past three years, 15.7% over the past five, and 17.7% over the past 10 (as of March 31). Is QQQ Stock a Buy, According to Analysts? Analysts also rate QQQ a Moderate Buy at current levels and see it as having similar upside potential of 9.5% based on the average QQQ stock price target of $385.11. Closing Thoughts It's hard to go wrong with any of these three ETFs, and in many ways, they are very similar. QQQ is slightly different in that it offers lower exposure to Apple (although it still gives investors double-digit exposure) and features more of the typical mega-cap tech and FAANG names that many investors likely associate with Apple. Meanwhile, these types of other names are not as prominent (or are missing altogether) from VGT and XLK, but they both give you Apple exposure of roughly 20% and similar stakes in Microsoft. QQQ features a higher expense ratio than VGT or XLK, but it is still a moderate expense ratio. All three of these tech-focused funds offer investors significant exposure to Apple, and all three have impeccable long-term performance track records. Furthermore, they all feature low expense ratios. For investors with a long time horizon and an interest in Apple as well as its tech peers, these ETFs look well-positioned to continue providing solid long-term returns. Disclosure

U.S. stocks edged higher on Thursday regaining some of their momentum thanks to a rebound by technology stocks, while volatility dropped to record lows ahead of an eventful economic and policy calendar next week.

Semtech Corporation’s SMTC first-quarter fiscal 2024 non-GAAP earnings of 2 cents per share compares favorably with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 7 cents per share. However, the reported earnings decreased by 97.5% yea

The tech-heavy Nasdaq led gains on Wall Street on Thursday as a dip in Treasury yields supported megacap stocks, though investors remained cautious ahead of inflation data and the Federal Reserve's policy meeting next week.