If an S&P 500 stock has one good year — that can just be luck, right? How about if the stock repeats its good fortune?
↑ X NOW PLAYING Beating The Market: How To Find Outperforming StocksTwo stocks have done just that. A duo of the top 10 stocks in the S&P 500 in 2024, including utilities Constellation Energy (CEG) and Vistra (VST), are among the 10 best stocks so far again in 2025, says an Investor's Business Daily analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSurge. Both are capitalizing on the enormous demand for electricity by tech companies building AI models.
And in an another interesting twist, one of the best S&P 500 stocks of 2024, Nvidia (NVDA), is one of the worst stocks of 2025 so far: down 10.6%. And yet, the S&P 500 gained roughly 2% on the month — ironically lagging many other countries' markets.
"Markets are finishing up the month in stride, with stocks and bonds starting the year with gains," said Jose Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers.
This year, the strong repeat performance of utilities stocks is noteworthy.
Constellation Energy, a utility in Maryland, has seen its shares surge 33.5% just this year already. And that gain comes on the heels of a 91.4% rise in 2024. The stock now sports an RS Rating of 95. The EPS Rating of 54 isn't as strong, but that could change fast. Analysts think the company's profit will rise 88% in 2024 and 9% in 2025.
Another strong gainer was 2024's top S&P 500 stock: Vistra. Shares of the Texas utility are up 21.5% this year, following a neck-breaking 257.9% rise in 2024. That's enough to give the stock an RS Rating of 98. Again, earnings are a wait-and-see phenomenon. The stock has an EPS Rating of just 48. But analysts think profit will rise 53% in 2024 and 28% in 2025.
Don't think, though, that only repeat-winner utility stocks are ruling in 2025. Health care, too, is a standout.
The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) is up 7% already this year. That makes it the top performer among the 11 S&P 500 sectors. And two of the top 10 stocks of 2024 are in the health care sector: CVS Health (CVS) and DaVita (DVA).
Shares of drugstore firm CVS Health are up 26.4%. That's a welcome change from 2024 when the shares tanked 43%. Not surprisingly, shares carry a low RS Rating of just 25. The EPS Rating of 31 isn't anything to brag about, either. Analysts think earnings will tank 41% in 2024, but gain 14% in 2025.
Dialysis firm DaVita, too, is a big winner so far. Shares are up 17.8% this year. And that's icing on top of a solid year in 2024 when shares rose 42.8%. The stock's RS Rating is a solid 89 and its EPS Rating is 72. Analysts expect double-digit earnings growth of 19% and 18%, respectively, in 2024 and 2025.
To be sure, it's too soon in 2025 to draw any conclusions. But January is making the S&P 500 trends clearer.
Constellation and Vistra were top 10 winners in 2024, too
| Company | Ticker | 2024 % ch. | YTD % ch. | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constellation Energy | CEG | 91.4% | 33.5% | Utilities |
| CVS Health | CVS | -43.1% | 26.4% | Health Care |
| GE Aerospace | GE | 30.7% | 22.0% | Industrials |
| Vistra | VST | 257.9% | 21.5% | Utilities |
| F5 | FFIV | 40.5% | 18.4% | Information Technology |
| 3M | MMM | 18.1% | 18.4% | Industrials |
| Starbucks | SBUX | -5.0% | 18.1% | Consumer Discretionary |
| DaVita | DVA | 42.8% | 17.8% | Health Care |
| Builders FirstSource | BLDR | -14.4% | 17.7% | Industrials |
| Meta Platforms | META | 65.4% | 17.3% | Communication Services |
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Sources: IBD, S&P Global Market Intelligence
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