Best-performing stocks of 2026, year to date
The 25 top-performing US stocks of 2026 year-to-date, market cap $4B and above, refreshed every trading day — the raw material the letter's trade ideas are drawn from. Strength isn't an opinion; it's a scoreboard.
| # | Ticker | Group | Mkt cap | 1-month | YTD | Volatility (ADR) | $ Vol / day | Off 52-wk high |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MRNA | Healthcare | $88.2B | +16% | +649% | 9.9% | $4,054M | -13.2% |
| 2 | CDNA | Healthcare | $4.5B | +28% | +356% | 6.6% | $103M | -5.5% |
| 3 | SNDK | AI Memory/Data Storage | $155.4B | -37% | +353% | 5.8% | $12,139M | -54.3% |
| 4 | TWST | Healthcare | $8.5B | -32% | +307% | 10.9% | $460M | -41.3% |
| 5 | IBRX | Healthcare | $8.4B | -23% | +302% | 7.7% | $125M | -36.0% |
| 6 | TXG | Healthcare | $7.4B | -34% | +278% | 10.0% | $311M | -40.1% |
| 7 | ERAS | Healthcare | $4.9B | -5% | +278% | 6.9% | $76M | -42.1% |
| 8 | DELL | Software | $249.6B | -30% | +212% | 5.4% | $3,265M | -34.1% |
| 9 | MU | AI Memory/Data Storage | $943.1B | -22% | +192% | 4.4% | $24,994M | -33.6% |
| 10 | SYRE | Healthcare | $8.8B | +2% | +192% | 5.4% | $113M | -13.3% |
| 11 | PBF | Energy | $8.9B | -7% | +177% | 5.6% | $228M | -18.8% |
| 12 | MPC | Energy | $120.9B | +2% | +165% | 3.7% | $942M | -12.9% |
| 13 | ANDG | Consumer Cyclical | $7.4B | +15% | +154% | 3.5% | $17M | -2.1% |
| 14 | IRDM | Space | $4.6B | -11% | +152% | 2.1% | $38M | -23.5% |
| 15 | HNGE | Healthcare | $9.3B | +18% | +149% | 4.1% | $209M | -2.9% |
| 16 | ASX | Technology | $86.5B | -17% | +143% | 4.2% | $365M | -18.3% |
| 17 | SSL | Basic Materials | $10.1B | +13% | +143% | 2.8% | $29M | -13.1% |
| 18 | DFTX | Healthcare | $4.3B | -13% | +142% | 5.3% | $69M | -34.7% |
| 19 | DINO | Energy | $19.1B | -1% | +142% | 4.0% | $268M | -13.7% |
| 20 | DK | Energy | $4.3B | -5% | +137% | 5.2% | $125M | -14.7% |
| 21 | CLMT | Basic Materials | $4.1B | -15% | +135% | 4.9% | $76M | -21.9% |
| 22 | VLO | Energy | $106.4B | -6% | +134% | 4.1% | $1,152M | -17.3% |
| 23 | CORT | Healthcare | $8.7B | -31% | +131% | 5.4% | $94M | -36.3% |
| 24 | BE | Fuel Cells | $58.0B | -32% | +126% | 6.9% | $3,571M | -44.1% |
| 25 | KNSA | Healthcare | $7.1B | +20% | +120% | 4.9% | $76M | -7.8% |
Market data through 2026-11-02 · market cap ≥ $4B · Performance scoreboard, not a buy list. Many of these are extended, so the entry has to come from a setup and its stop, never from the rank. The evening letter is where strength meets entry context. Not investment advice.
Where the leaders cluster
How many of the top 25 sit in each industry group. Concentration is the tell: a group with four or five names on this list is where institutional money has been going all year.
- Healthcare11 namesRTL research on this groupWe Went to Cash on Friday. Here are the New Leaders & Themes We’re Tracking.
- Energy5 namesRTL research on this groupEnergy & Software Lead, AI Lags: The 3 Longs and 3 Shorts We'd Take First
- AI Memory/Data Storage2 namesRTL research on this groupNvidia Has $279 Billion in Supply Commitments, Mostly Memory. Micron Trades at Six Times Earnings.
- Basic Materials2 names
- Consumer Cyclical1 name
- Fuel Cells1 nameRTL research on this groupTwo Buys, One Short, and the 4 Names First in Line Friday
- Software1 nameRTL research on this groupThe Nasdaq Is Where It Bounced in March: What We Buy If It Holds, What We Short If It Doesn't
- Space1 name
- Technology1 nameRTL research on this groupSemis Broke Their 200-Day. The Nasdaq Held by Two Points. Here's What We'd Buy Next.
What makes a market leader
A big year-to-date gain is where a leader shows up, not what makes one. The names worth studying usually share a few traits: strong relative strength against the market, signs of accumulation (price rising on heavier volume as institutions build positions), and a place in a group that is leading too. The "Where the leaders cluster" counts above are that group effect showing up.
Leaders also get extended. A stock at the top of this list can sit far above its moving averages, which is why the rank is never the entry. The free letter covers which groups are leading each evening and what would change that view. Get the free letter →
How this scoreboard is built
Every US-listed stock with a market cap of $4 billion or more, a share price above $5 and real daily volume (ETFs excluded) is ranked by year-to-date price change, using the prior day's official close. The top 25 are shown with their industry group, one-month change, average daily range (a volatility gauge), average daily dollar volume, and distance from the 52-week high.
It is a scoreboard, not a watchlist. Many of the names here are extended, and a few are already breaking down. The letter draws its trade ideas from lists like this one and adds the part that matters: an entry level, a stop, and a thesis written before the move. The vocabulary on this page is defined in the glossary.