Will the dominance of the Magnificent 7 persist in 2024?

Since the beginning of last year, several companies have shone as beacons of innovation and growth. These giants, now known as the “magnificent seven,” have captivated investors with their impressive track records, incredible stock performance and visionary strategies.

Now, as 2024 is well underway, it’s time to pull back the curtain and examine how these exceptional companies have performed year to date and whether or not that theme remains intact.

The extent to which these powerhouses influenced market gains last year was remarkable. So the question for 2024 is: will this dominance persist? Or could it only survive in a handful of Magnificent Seven titles while the other members lose their influence? Let’s take a look at how the year has unfolded so far for the seven members.

The dominance of the Magnificent 7 persists

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust Fund NYSE: SPY, a reliable benchmark for the entire US stock market, is dominated by the Magnificent Seven. The ETF’s top seven holdings are the seven members, which comprise a total combined weighting of nearly 28%.

Therefore, a quick guide to assessing whether the theme of 2023 remains in 2024 could be to evaluate the overall market performance. Remarkably, year to date the market is already up nearly 5%, with the popular ETF trading at all-time highs and rapidly approaching the elusive $500 mark.

Notably, however, unlike 2023, this year’s dominance was further concentrated in only a few of the seven members, while other members underperformed.

Here’s what you should know about each of them:

Meta platforms NASDAQ: META

Shifting from a focus on social media to building the metaverse, the company rebranded from Facebook to Meta Platforms in 2021. After last year’s notable rebound and triple-digit earnings, the stock is up 33% year to date. Sentiment continues to grow bullish around the stock, as it is the most highly rated, updated and one of the most followed names. Meta has a Moderate Buy rating and a price target of nearly 5% upside.

Nvidia NASDAQ:NVDA

Nvidia specializes in high-end graphics and mobile processors for various devices. Among the Magnificent Seven, its exceptional performance shines, boasting an impressive gain of 212% compared to the previous year and already 41% year to date. This is an exceptional achievement, considering that its market capitalization now stands at $1.72 trillion. Analysts are bullish on the stock, assigning a Moderate Buy rating. However, the stock may be entering overbought territory as the consensus price target is now 11.5% lower than NVDA’s current price.

Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT

Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, is known for Windows, Azure cloud services, LinkedIn, the Office suite and Xbox games. In 2023, Activision Blizzard’s acquisition and innovative AI developments with OpenAI have garnered significant attention. Year to date, the software giant is already growing double digits, over 10%, and expects earnings growth of 13.10%. The stock is among the most quoted and one of the most updated names, possessing a strong dividend.

Apple NASDAQ:AAPL

Year to date, Apple has fallen short of this milestone, with shares down just over 2%. Microsoft also surpassed the company to become the most valuable company in the world. The company’s Moderate Buy rating is higher than the S&P 500’s Hold rating. Additionally, analysts have given the stock a consensus price target of $205.72, predicting an upside of more than 9%.

Amazon.com NASDAQ:AMZN

Amazon is a major global player in online retail, cloud services and digital entertainment. Thanks to an impressive increase in earnings, Amazon has grown nearly 12% year to date. Notably, analysts expect significant upside for the stock despite its impressive annual gains. The consensus price target of $197.95 sees an upside of nearly 17%.

Tesla NASDAQ:TSLA

Tesla is a pioneer in electric vehicles, driver assistance technology and renewable energy products. Dominating electric vehicle sales in the United States, it is led by charismatic CEO Elon Musk. The electric vehicle maker’s shares have slipped since the start of the year, down more than 23%, and faces growing pressure to no longer be part of the so-called mag Seven, with Berkshire Hathaway New York Stock Exchange: BRK.B potentially next in line as it is the eighth largest holding in the SPY ETF, after Tesla.

Alphabet NASDAQ:GOOGL

Holding more than 90% of the global search market, Alphabet is a leader in online search. Additionally, Google’s Bard AI chatbot competes prominently with ChatGPT. Like many above, Alphabet is favored among analysts, who have assigned a Moderate Buy rating to the stock and predicted an upside of more than 5%. With a modest P/E of 25.16 and expected earnings growth of nearly 15% for the full year, Alphabet stock could be catching up with some of those mentioned above that have soared year-to-date.

Before you consider Meta Platform, you’ll want to hear it out.

MarketBeat tracks daily Wall Street’s highest-rated and best-performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients. MarketBeat identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market takes hold… and Meta Platforms wasn’t on the list.

While Meta Platforms currently has a “Moderate Buy” rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.

View the five stocks here