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Kiplinger's annual investing outlook, which includes the best stocks to buy, has been a feature for our readers since 2012.
As executive editor for Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, I have authored the piece since then, surveying the stock market and economy and synthesizing my findings into key takeaways.
That's no small task, given the broad and dynamic nature of the market. Along with conducting plenty of research, I rely on my experience to draw out the most important trends and likely winners for the best stocks to buy.
I've covered this story for over a decade now, but I've been an investing writer for far longer. I've seen investors through a lot of
bull markets
and
bear markets
.
How you can choose the best stocks to buy
When investors are attempting to find the best stocks to buy now, they should look beyond factors such as company size (
small-cap stocks
and
large-cap stocks
, for instance) or investing style (such as growth or value) and search for stocks of companies with consistent profits, good cash flow and other indicators that reflect quality.
"If a company generates more cash than it needs to run its business, it can do a number of useful things with it, such as pay dividends, buy back its stock, acquire other companies, expand its business and knock out its debts," writes Kiplinger contributor Will Ashworth on
the importance of good cash flow
.
While Kiplinger's outlook provides context and advice related to general market trends, it's important for individual investors to consider their own risk tolerance and time horizon when deciding what works best for them and their financial goals.
With that in mind, here are seven of the best stocks to buy now.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Best stocks to buy
When assembling this list of Kiplinger's best stocks to buy, we seek out high-quality companies that boast solid fundamentals such as strong earnings and revenue growth as well as free cash flow. Free cash flow is the money left over after operating expenses and spending on assets.
Additionally, we will often look for names considered some of the
best value stocks
as measured by their forward
price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios
.
Our list of the best stocks to buy varies by size and industry and the picks are not meant to make up a diversified portfolio. But all, for one reason or another, are stocks we feel are well positioned to benefit over the next 12 months.
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Company
Ticker symbol
Adobe
ADBE
Cardinal Health
CAH
Eli Lilly
LLY
GE Aerospace
GE
Marvell Technology
MRVL
Welltower
WELL
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Ahmet Okur/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Adobe
Sector:
Technology
Market value:
$116.4 billion
Dividend yield:
N/A
Adobe
(
ADBE
), the dominant player in creative software, is further ahead in the
artificial intelligence (AI)
boom than investors give it credit for.
The maker of Photoshop, Illustrator and the pioneering PDF Acrobat tool has seen its shares tumble over fears that its conventional software will get eaten alive by AI. But early returns on its AI effort, centered around its Firefly suite of products, are promising.
Analyst
Angelo Zino
, at research firm CFRA, says Adobe's AI-centric products are hitting their early targets and contributing significantly to the firm's annual recurring revenue stream.
The
tech stock
trades for about 12 times estimated earnings for the next 12 months, roughly one-third of peak levels from 2024.
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Sheldon Cooper/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Cardinal Health
Sector:
Health care
Market value:
$51.2 billion
Dividend yield:
0.9%
Cardinal Health
(
CAH
), one of three major middlemen in drug distribution, is back after losing its OptumRx contract in 2024.
The firm, which also helps medical practices run back-office operations, among other things, reported solid results for the most recent quarter, and if the company maintains its pace, it could do better than management forecasts for 2026, says UBS analyst
Kevin Caliendo
.
Cardinal's focus on specialty pharmaceuticals — high-cost meds for cancer, for example — is starting to pay off. Another plus: Its drug-distribution business is defensive and largely inÂsulated from tariff concerns.
Shares are at an all-time high, but at 21 times estimated earnings, they trade in line with competitors. And analysts expect Cardinal to post 18% earnings growth in 2026 — better than its peers. Even so, aim to buy the
health care stock
on any dips.
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Eli Lilly
Sector:
Health care
Market value:
$934.2 billion
Dividend yield:
0.7%
Indianapolis-based drugmaker
Eli Lilly
(
LLY
) is best known lately for its diaÂbetes treatment and weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. In the most recent quarter, the two logged year-over-year sales gains of 110% and 123%, respectively. And Lilly is on track with an oral GLP-1 drug.
But the firm is busy in other areas, too, announcing approvals for drugs targeting ulcerative colitis and Alzheimer's.
In February, analysts at Argus Research boosted their earnings estimate for the Buy-rated stock from 28% to 43% for 2026, and they raised their 12-month target price from $930 to $1,200.
The stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 29 based on a consensus of analysts' estimates for the next 12 months.
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
GE Aerospace
Sector:
Industrials
Market value:
$338.9 billion
Dividend yield:
0.6%
GE Aerospace
(
GE
), the successor to the original General Electric Co., has been an engine for shareholder returns since the
2024 breakup of the old, moribund GE
.
Roughly 75% of the world's airplane flights use GE's aircraft engines, which need significant rebuilding over the course of their long lives. That means GE gets an estimated 70% of its revenue from servicing its own products.
Analyst
Ronald Epstein
, of BofA Global Research, says a division catering to military aircraft has "rounded GE into a full-fledged defense play."
GE is aggressively buying back shares and increasing a dividend that currently yields 0.6%. The
industrial stock
is expensive, at 43 times the next 12 months' earnings, but seems poised to continue its ascent. BofA sees the stock trading at $365 over the next 12 months.
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Marvell Technology
Sector:
Technology
Market value:
$76.0 billion
Dividend yield:
0.3%
In the race to design artificial inÂtelligence chips,
Marvell Technology
(
MRVL
) has a lot to prove. The company has grown through acquisition, but analysts want to see it increase revenues and earnings organically.
Amazon.com's (
AMZN
) cloud-computing business is a big customer, but concerns about that relationship were partly to blame for a 24% drop in the stock in August. (Marvell says it's not a worry.)
A poor quarter was also a drag. Still, analysts who are bullish on the stock say Marvell has a broad, diversified semiconductor portfolio that can weather tough times.
And shares are cheap relative to peers, trading at 24 times estimated earnings for the year ahead. Infrastructure CapÂital Advisors'
Jay Hatfield
says he thinks the
semiconductor stock
could trade at a P/E of 35, which represents a 20%-plus jump. Buckle up, though: "Marvell is not for the faint of heart," he says.
Sponsored Content
(Image credit: Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Welltower
Sector:
Real estate
Market value:
$142.5 billion
Dividend yield:
1.5%
The oldest baby boomers will turn 80 in 2026, and that will drive demand for senior-living facilities. And there's limited supply: Occupancy rates are high, and few new facilities are in the works. That's a bullish backdrop for Welltower, a major player in senior housing real estate investment trusts (
REITs
).
The firm recently sold 70% of its medical office portÂfolio so it could acquire more senior-home facilities.
Welltower
(
WELL
) has shored up its balance sheet, too, and now is "the most under-levered REIT out there," says analyst
Vikram Malhotra
, who covers REITs for Mizuho Securities.
The catch: Shares are up 41% over the past 12 months and trade at 39 times adjusted funds from operations (the preferred income measure for REITs), more than double the ratio for the typical REIT. The premium is "reasonable," says Malhotra, when you consider Welltower's superior cash flow growth.
Note: This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly, trustworthy source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make
here
.
Related content
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Anne Kates Smith brings Wall Street to Main Street, with decades of experience covering investments and personal finance for real people trying to navigate fast-changing markets, preserve financial security or plan for the future. She oversees the magazine's investing coverage, authors Kiplinger’s biannual stock-market outlooks and writes the "Your Mind and Your Money" column, a take on behavioral finance and how investors can get out of their own way. Smith began her journalism career as a writer and columnist for
USA Today
. Prior to joining Kiplinger, she was a senior editor at
U.S. News & World Report
and a contributing columnist for TheStreet. Smith is a graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, Md., the third-oldest college in America.
With contributions from
Nellie S. Huang
Senior Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine
David Milstead
Senior Associate Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance | |||||||||
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# Best Stocks to Buy Now
When compiling our list of the best stocks to buy now, we look for high-quality companies that are poised to benefit over the next 12 months.
By [Anne Kates Smith](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/anne-kates-smith)
last updated
9 March 2026
Contributions from
[David Milstead](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/david-milstead), [Nellie S. Huang](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/nellie-s-huang)
in [News](https://www.kiplinger.com/news)
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(Image credit: Getty Images)
Kiplinger's annual investing outlook, which includes the best stocks to buy, has been a feature for our readers since 2012.
As executive editor for Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, I have authored the piece since then, surveying the stock market and economy and synthesizing my findings into key takeaways.
That's no small task, given the broad and dynamic nature of the market. Along with conducting plenty of research, I rely on my experience to draw out the most important trends and likely winners for the best stocks to buy.
I've covered this story for over a decade now, but I've been an investing writer for far longer. I've seen investors through a lot of [bull markets](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/600938/bull-markets-10-things-you-must-know) and [bear markets](https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/t052-s001-8-facts-you-need-to-know-about-bear-markets/index.html).
## How you can choose the best stocks to buy
When investors are attempting to find the best stocks to buy now, they should look beyond factors such as company size ([small-cap stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-small-cap-stocks-to-buy) and [large-cap stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-large-cap-stocks-to-buy), for instance) or investing style (such as growth or value) and search for stocks of companies with consistent profits, good cash flow and other indicators that reflect quality.
"If a company generates more cash than it needs to run its business, it can do a number of useful things with it, such as pay dividends, buy back its stock, acquire other companies, expand its business and knock out its debts," writes Kiplinger contributor Will Ashworth on [the importance of good cash flow](https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/t052-s001-10-stocks-to-buy-for-kingly-free-cash-flow/index.html).
While Kiplinger's outlook provides context and advice related to general market trends, it's important for individual investors to consider their own risk tolerance and time horizon when deciding what works best for them and their financial goals.
**With that in mind, here are seven of the best stocks to buy now.**
(Image credit: Getty Images)
### Best stocks to buy
When assembling this list of Kiplinger's best stocks to buy, we seek out high-quality companies that boast solid fundamentals such as strong earnings and revenue growth as well as free cash flow. Free cash flow is the money left over after operating expenses and spending on assets.
Additionally, we will often look for names considered some of the [best value stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-value-stocks-to-buy) as measured by their forward [price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/what-is-a-pe-ratio-and-how-do-i-use-it-in-investing).
Our list of the best stocks to buy varies by size and industry and the picks are not meant to make up a diversified portfolio. But all, for one reason or another, are stocks we feel are well positioned to benefit over the next 12 months.
Swipe to scroll horizontally
| Company | Ticker symbol |
|---|---|
| Adobe | ADBE |
| Cardinal Health | CAH |
| Eli Lilly | LLY |
| GE Aerospace | GE |
| Marvell Technology | MRVL |
| Welltower | WELL |
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Ahmet Okur/Anadolu via Getty Images)
### Adobe
- **Sector:** Technology
- **Market value:** \$116.4 billion
- **Dividend yield:** N/A
**Adobe** ([ADBE](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=ADBE)), the dominant player in creative software, is further ahead in the [artificial intelligence (AI)](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/tech-stocks/yes-artificial-intelligence-stocks-are-booming) boom than investors give it credit for.
The maker of Photoshop, Illustrator and the pioneering PDF Acrobat tool has seen its shares tumble over fears that its conventional software will get eaten alive by AI. But early returns on its AI effort, centered around its Firefly suite of products, are promising.
Analyst [Angelo Zino](https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-zino-1953a110/), at research firm CFRA, says Adobe's AI-centric products are hitting their early targets and contributing significantly to the firm's annual recurring revenue stream.
The [tech stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-tech-stocks-to-buy) trades for about 12 times estimated earnings for the next 12 months, roughly one-third of peak levels from 2024.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Sheldon Cooper/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
### Cardinal Health
- **Sector:** Health care
- **Market value:** \$51.2 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0\.9%
**Cardinal Health** ([CAH](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=CAH)), one of three major middlemen in drug distribution, is back after losing its OptumRx contract in 2024.
The firm, which also helps medical practices run back-office operations, among other things, reported solid results for the most recent quarter, and if the company maintains its pace, it could do better than management forecasts for 2026, says UBS analyst [Kevin Caliendo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-caliendo-5b202712).
Cardinal's focus on specialty pharmaceuticals — high-cost meds for cancer, for example — is starting to pay off. Another plus: Its drug-distribution business is defensive and largely inÂsulated from tariff concerns.
Shares are at an all-time high, but at 21 times estimated earnings, they trade in line with competitors. And analysts expect Cardinal to post 18% earnings growth in 2026 — better than its peers. Even so, aim to buy the [health care stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-health-care-stocks-to-buy) on any dips.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
### Eli Lilly
- **Sector:** Health care
- **Market value:** \$934.2 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.7%
Indianapolis-based drugmaker **Eli Lilly** ([LLY](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=LLY)) is best known lately for its diaÂbetes treatment and weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. In the most recent quarter, the two logged year-over-year sales gains of 110% and 123%, respectively. And Lilly is on track with an oral GLP-1 drug.
But the firm is busy in other areas, too, announcing approvals for drugs targeting ulcerative colitis and Alzheimer's.
In February, analysts at Argus Research boosted their earnings estimate for the Buy-rated stock from 28% to 43% for 2026, and they raised their 12-month target price from \$930 to \$1,200.
The stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 29 based on a consensus of analysts' estimates for the next 12 months.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
### GE Aerospace
- **Sector:** Industrials
- **Market value:** \$338.9 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.6%
**GE Aerospace** ([GE](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=GE)), the successor to the original General Electric Co., has been an engine for shareholder returns since the [2024 breakup of the old, moribund GE](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/as-general-electric-sets-spin-off-old-ge-name-is-going-away).
Roughly 75% of the world's airplane flights use GE's aircraft engines, which need significant rebuilding over the course of their long lives. That means GE gets an estimated 70% of its revenue from servicing its own products.
Analyst [Ronald Epstein](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronald-epstein-9014a155/), of BofA Global Research, says a division catering to military aircraft has "rounded GE into a full-fledged defense play."
GE is aggressively buying back shares and increasing a dividend that currently yields 0.6%. The [industrial stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-industrial-stocks-to-buy) is expensive, at 43 times the next 12 months' earnings, but seems poised to continue its ascent. BofA sees the stock trading at \$365 over the next 12 months.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Getty Images)
### Marvell Technology
- **Sector:** Technology
- **Market value:** \$76.0 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.3%
In the race to design artificial inÂtelligence chips, **Marvell Technology** ([MRVL](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=MRVL)) has a lot to prove. The company has grown through acquisition, but analysts want to see it increase revenues and earnings organically.
Amazon.com's ([AMZN](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=AMZN)) cloud-computing business is a big customer, but concerns about that relationship were partly to blame for a 24% drop in the stock in August. (Marvell says it's not a worry.)
A poor quarter was also a drag. Still, analysts who are bullish on the stock say Marvell has a broad, diversified semiconductor portfolio that can weather tough times.
And shares are cheap relative to peers, trading at 24 times estimated earnings for the year ahead. Infrastructure CapÂital Advisors' [Jay Hatfield](https://www.infracapfunds.com/leadership) says he thinks the [semiconductor stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-semiconductor-stocks) could trade at a P/E of 35, which represents a 20%-plus jump. Buckle up, though: "Marvell is not for the faint of heart," he says.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
### Welltower
- **Sector:** Real estate
- **Market value:** \$142.5 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 1.5%
The oldest baby boomers will turn 80 in 2026, and that will drive demand for senior-living facilities. And there's limited supply: Occupancy rates are high, and few new facilities are in the works. That's a bullish backdrop for Welltower, a major player in senior housing real estate investment trusts ([REITs](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/reits/best-reits-to-buy)).
The firm recently sold 70% of its medical office portÂfolio so it could acquire more senior-home facilities. **Welltower** ([WELL](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=WELL)) has shored up its balance sheet, too, and now is "the most under-levered REIT out there," says analyst [Vikram Malhotra](https://www.linkedin.com/in/vikram-malhotra-6581b1a), who covers REITs for Mizuho Securities.
The catch: Shares are up 41% over the past 12 months and trade at 39 times adjusted funds from operations (the preferred income measure for REITs), more than double the ratio for the typical REIT. The premium is "reasonable," says Malhotra, when you consider Welltower's superior cash flow growth.
*Note: This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly, trustworthy source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make* [*here*](https://subscribe.kiplinger.com/loc/KPP/kipcomarticles)*.*
### Related content
- [We're Still Bullish on Stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/why-we-are-still-bullish-on-stocks)
- [Kip ETF 20: The Best Cheap ETFs You Can Buy](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/etfs/603214/kip-etf-20-the-best-cheap-etfs-you-can-buy)
- [The 25 Best No-Load Mutual Funds You Can Buy](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/mutual-funds/602176/kip-25-best-low-fee-mutual-funds)
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
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Executive Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance
Anne Kates Smith brings Wall Street to Main Street, with decades of experience covering investments and personal finance for real people trying to navigate fast-changing markets, preserve financial security or plan for the future. She oversees the magazine's investing coverage, authors Kiplinger’s biannual stock-market outlooks and writes the "Your Mind and Your Money" column, a take on behavioral finance and how investors can get out of their own way. Smith began her journalism career as a writer and columnist for *USA Today*. Prior to joining Kiplinger, she was a senior editor at *U.S. News & World Report* and a contributing columnist for TheStreet. Smith is a graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, Md., the third-oldest college in America.
With contributions from
- [Nellie S. Huang](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/nellie-s-huang)Senior Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine
- [David Milstead](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/david-milstead)Senior Associate Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance
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| Readable Markdown | 
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Kiplinger's annual investing outlook, which includes the best stocks to buy, has been a feature for our readers since 2012.
As executive editor for Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, I have authored the piece since then, surveying the stock market and economy and synthesizing my findings into key takeaways.
That's no small task, given the broad and dynamic nature of the market. Along with conducting plenty of research, I rely on my experience to draw out the most important trends and likely winners for the best stocks to buy.
I've covered this story for over a decade now, but I've been an investing writer for far longer. I've seen investors through a lot of [bull markets](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/600938/bull-markets-10-things-you-must-know) and [bear markets](https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/t052-s001-8-facts-you-need-to-know-about-bear-markets/index.html).
## How you can choose the best stocks to buy
When investors are attempting to find the best stocks to buy now, they should look beyond factors such as company size ([small-cap stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-small-cap-stocks-to-buy) and [large-cap stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-large-cap-stocks-to-buy), for instance) or investing style (such as growth or value) and search for stocks of companies with consistent profits, good cash flow and other indicators that reflect quality.
"If a company generates more cash than it needs to run its business, it can do a number of useful things with it, such as pay dividends, buy back its stock, acquire other companies, expand its business and knock out its debts," writes Kiplinger contributor Will Ashworth on [the importance of good cash flow](https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/t052-s001-10-stocks-to-buy-for-kingly-free-cash-flow/index.html).
While Kiplinger's outlook provides context and advice related to general market trends, it's important for individual investors to consider their own risk tolerance and time horizon when deciding what works best for them and their financial goals.
**With that in mind, here are seven of the best stocks to buy now.**
(Image credit: Getty Images)
### Best stocks to buy
When assembling this list of Kiplinger's best stocks to buy, we seek out high-quality companies that boast solid fundamentals such as strong earnings and revenue growth as well as free cash flow. Free cash flow is the money left over after operating expenses and spending on assets.
Additionally, we will often look for names considered some of the [best value stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-value-stocks-to-buy) as measured by their forward [price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/what-is-a-pe-ratio-and-how-do-i-use-it-in-investing).
Our list of the best stocks to buy varies by size and industry and the picks are not meant to make up a diversified portfolio. But all, for one reason or another, are stocks we feel are well positioned to benefit over the next 12 months.
Swipe to scroll horizontally
| Company | Ticker symbol |
|---|---|
| Adobe | ADBE |
| Cardinal Health | CAH |
| Eli Lilly | LLY |
| GE Aerospace | GE |
| Marvell Technology | MRVL |
| Welltower | WELL |
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(Image credit: Ahmet Okur/Anadolu via Getty Images)
### Adobe
- **Sector:** Technology
- **Market value:** \$116.4 billion
- **Dividend yield:** N/A
**Adobe** ([ADBE](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=ADBE)), the dominant player in creative software, is further ahead in the [artificial intelligence (AI)](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/tech-stocks/yes-artificial-intelligence-stocks-are-booming) boom than investors give it credit for.
The maker of Photoshop, Illustrator and the pioneering PDF Acrobat tool has seen its shares tumble over fears that its conventional software will get eaten alive by AI. But early returns on its AI effort, centered around its Firefly suite of products, are promising.
Analyst [Angelo Zino](https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-zino-1953a110/), at research firm CFRA, says Adobe's AI-centric products are hitting their early targets and contributing significantly to the firm's annual recurring revenue stream.
The [tech stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-tech-stocks-to-buy) trades for about 12 times estimated earnings for the next 12 months, roughly one-third of peak levels from 2024.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Sheldon Cooper/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
### Cardinal Health
- **Sector:** Health care
- **Market value:** \$51.2 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0\.9%
**Cardinal Health** ([CAH](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=CAH)), one of three major middlemen in drug distribution, is back after losing its OptumRx contract in 2024.
The firm, which also helps medical practices run back-office operations, among other things, reported solid results for the most recent quarter, and if the company maintains its pace, it could do better than management forecasts for 2026, says UBS analyst [Kevin Caliendo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-caliendo-5b202712).
Cardinal's focus on specialty pharmaceuticals — high-cost meds for cancer, for example — is starting to pay off. Another plus: Its drug-distribution business is defensive and largely inÂsulated from tariff concerns.
Shares are at an all-time high, but at 21 times estimated earnings, they trade in line with competitors. And analysts expect Cardinal to post 18% earnings growth in 2026 — better than its peers. Even so, aim to buy the [health care stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/the-best-health-care-stocks-to-buy) on any dips.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
### Eli Lilly
- **Sector:** Health care
- **Market value:** \$934.2 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.7%
Indianapolis-based drugmaker **Eli Lilly** ([LLY](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=LLY)) is best known lately for its diaÂbetes treatment and weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. In the most recent quarter, the two logged year-over-year sales gains of 110% and 123%, respectively. And Lilly is on track with an oral GLP-1 drug.
But the firm is busy in other areas, too, announcing approvals for drugs targeting ulcerative colitis and Alzheimer's.
In February, analysts at Argus Research boosted their earnings estimate for the Buy-rated stock from 28% to 43% for 2026, and they raised their 12-month target price from \$930 to \$1,200.
The stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 29 based on a consensus of analysts' estimates for the next 12 months.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
### GE Aerospace
- **Sector:** Industrials
- **Market value:** \$338.9 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.6%
**GE Aerospace** ([GE](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=GE)), the successor to the original General Electric Co., has been an engine for shareholder returns since the [2024 breakup of the old, moribund GE](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/as-general-electric-sets-spin-off-old-ge-name-is-going-away).
Roughly 75% of the world's airplane flights use GE's aircraft engines, which need significant rebuilding over the course of their long lives. That means GE gets an estimated 70% of its revenue from servicing its own products.
Analyst [Ronald Epstein](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronald-epstein-9014a155/), of BofA Global Research, says a division catering to military aircraft has "rounded GE into a full-fledged defense play."
GE is aggressively buying back shares and increasing a dividend that currently yields 0.6%. The [industrial stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-industrial-stocks-to-buy) is expensive, at 43 times the next 12 months' earnings, but seems poised to continue its ascent. BofA sees the stock trading at \$365 over the next 12 months.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Getty Images)
### Marvell Technology
- **Sector:** Technology
- **Market value:** \$76.0 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 0.3%
In the race to design artificial inÂtelligence chips, **Marvell Technology** ([MRVL](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=MRVL)) has a lot to prove. The company has grown through acquisition, but analysts want to see it increase revenues and earnings organically.
Amazon.com's ([AMZN](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=AMZN)) cloud-computing business is a big customer, but concerns about that relationship were partly to blame for a 24% drop in the stock in August. (Marvell says it's not a worry.)
A poor quarter was also a drag. Still, analysts who are bullish on the stock say Marvell has a broad, diversified semiconductor portfolio that can weather tough times.
And shares are cheap relative to peers, trading at 24 times estimated earnings for the year ahead. Infrastructure CapÂital Advisors' [Jay Hatfield](https://www.infracapfunds.com/leadership) says he thinks the [semiconductor stock](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-semiconductor-stocks) could trade at a P/E of 35, which represents a 20%-plus jump. Buckle up, though: "Marvell is not for the faint of heart," he says.
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
(Image credit: Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
### Welltower
- **Sector:** Real estate
- **Market value:** \$142.5 billion
- **Dividend yield:** 1.5%
The oldest baby boomers will turn 80 in 2026, and that will drive demand for senior-living facilities. And there's limited supply: Occupancy rates are high, and few new facilities are in the works. That's a bullish backdrop for Welltower, a major player in senior housing real estate investment trusts ([REITs](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/reits/best-reits-to-buy)).
The firm recently sold 70% of its medical office portÂfolio so it could acquire more senior-home facilities. **Welltower** ([WELL](https://www.kiplinger.com/tfn/ticker.html?ticker=WELL)) has shored up its balance sheet, too, and now is "the most under-levered REIT out there," says analyst [Vikram Malhotra](https://www.linkedin.com/in/vikram-malhotra-6581b1a), who covers REITs for Mizuho Securities.
The catch: Shares are up 41% over the past 12 months and trade at 39 times adjusted funds from operations (the preferred income measure for REITs), more than double the ratio for the typical REIT. The premium is "reasonable," says Malhotra, when you consider Welltower's superior cash flow growth.
*Note: This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly, trustworthy source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make* [*here*](https://subscribe.kiplinger.com/loc/KPP/kipcomarticles)*.*
### Related content
- [We're Still Bullish on Stocks](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/why-we-are-still-bullish-on-stocks)
- [Kip ETF 20: The Best Cheap ETFs You Can Buy](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/etfs/603214/kip-etf-20-the-best-cheap-etfs-you-can-buy)
- [The 25 Best No-Load Mutual Funds You Can Buy](https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/mutual-funds/602176/kip-25-best-low-fee-mutual-funds)
### Sponsored Content [](https://www.dianomi.com/whatsthis.pl?id=5819 "dianomi")
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.
Anne Kates Smith brings Wall Street to Main Street, with decades of experience covering investments and personal finance for real people trying to navigate fast-changing markets, preserve financial security or plan for the future. She oversees the magazine's investing coverage, authors Kiplinger’s biannual stock-market outlooks and writes the "Your Mind and Your Money" column, a take on behavioral finance and how investors can get out of their own way. Smith began her journalism career as a writer and columnist for *USA Today*. Prior to joining Kiplinger, she was a senior editor at *U.S. News & World Report* and a contributing columnist for TheStreet. Smith is a graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, Md., the third-oldest college in America.
With contributions from
- [Nellie S. Huang](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/nellie-s-huang)Senior Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine
- [David Milstead](https://www.kiplinger.com/author/david-milstead)Senior Associate Editor, Kiplinger Personal Finance | |||||||||
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