Also, the 3 sectors that Wall Street analysts are most bullish about.
The usual suspects dominated in 2025 as both the Communication Services and Information Technology sectors helped boost the S&P 500 to a 16% return last year. These sectors have been the driving force behind the three-year bull market that began in late 2022.
Should investors expect more of the same in 2026? A recent report from financial data leader FactSet provides some indication of the sectors that Wall Street analysts are most bullish about this year.
FactSet analyzed the analyst ratings of nearly 12,700 U.S. stocks, looking for trends and insights. Of those stocks, some 57.5% had Buy ratings, the highest month-end percentage since February 2022. It is also above the 5-year average of 55.5%.
Further, FactSet said 37.7% had Hold ratings and 4.8% had Sell ratings. The percentage of Hold ratings is below its 5-year average of 38.8% while the percentage of Sell ratings is below its 5-year average of 5.7%.
Examining the data at the sector level, FactSet found that the Information Technology, Energy, and Communication Services sectors had the most Buy ratings.
On the other end of the spectrum, the Consumer Staples and Utilities sectors had the lowest percentages of Buy ratings, with Industrials, Financials, and Real Estate not far behind.
Here is a breakdown of sectors with their Buy and Sell rating percentages, per FactSet.
- 1. Informational Technology: 67% Buy, 4% Sell
- 2. Energy: 65% Buy, 2% Sell
- 3. Communication Services: 64% Buy, 4% Sell
- 4. Materials: 60% Buy, 4% Sell.
- 5. Healthcare: 59% Buy, 4% Sell
- 6. S&P 500: 57% Buy, 5% Sell
- 7. Consumer Discretionary: 57^ Buy, 6% Sell
- 8. Real Estate: 55% Buy, 2% Sell
- 9. Financials: 54% Buy, 6% Sell
- 10. Industrials 54% Buy, 5% Sell
- 11. Utilities: 48% Buy, 6% Sell
- 12. Consumer Staples: 44% Buy, 8% Sell
Consumer Staples also had the highest percentage of Hold ratings, 48%.
Stocks with the most Buy and Sell ratings
This isn’t meant as investment advice, it is simply a compilation by FactSet of S&P 500 stocks that have the highest percentage of Buy ratings, and the highest percentage of Sell ratings.
The stock with a 100% Buy rating is Qnity Electronics (NYSE:Q). Qnity provides materials and technology for semiconductor chips and electronics. Last year it returned about 26% and it has a median price target of $109 per share, which would indicate 23% upside.
Other stocks with high buy ratings are some household names, like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO), and Meta (NASDAQ:META).
- 1. Qnity (Q): 100% Buy
- 2. Microsoft (MSFT). 98% Buy, 2% Hold
- 3. Amazon (AMZN): 96% Buy, 4% Hold
- 4. Boston Scientific (BSX): 94% Buy, 6% Hold
- 5. Diamondback Energy (FANG): 94% Buy, 6% Hold
- 6. Broadcom (AVGO): 94% Buy, 6% Hold
- 7. SLB Limited (SLB): 94% Buy, 6% Hold
- 8. Trimble (TRMB): 93% Buy, 7% Hold
- 9. Targa Resources (TRGP): 92% Buy, 8% Hold
- 10. Meta Platforms (META): 92% Buy, 8% Hold
And here are the 10 S&P 500 stocks that have the highest percentage of sell ratings, according to FactSet’s analysis.
- 1. Expeditors International of Washington (EXPD): 44% Sell, 6% Buy
- 2. Garmin (GRMN): 36% Sell, 27% Buy
- 3. Franklin Resources (BEN): 36% Sell, 21% Buy
- 4. Consoliated Edison (ED): 35% Sell, 18% Buy
- 5. Illinois Tool Works (ITW): 33% Sell, 10% Buy
- 6. Lennar (LEN): 33% Sell, 29% Buy
- 7. Brown-Forman (BF.B): 33% Sell, 22% Buy
- 8. T. Rowe Price (TROW): 33% Sell, 0% Buy
- 9. Fastenal (FAST): 29% Sell, 24% Buy
- 10. Archer Daniels Midland (ADM): 29% Sell, 14% Buy
Note that the percentage of Hold ratings for each of these stocks is the difference after calculating the Buy and Sell percentages.
Again, these are not meant as recommendations, they are just a compilation of analyst ratings. Investors should do their own research and always keep an eye out for long-term performance, as many of these ratings are more short-term in nature.
