2025’s Market Kings (So Far)

2025’s Market Kings (So Far)

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BY JASON BODNER, EDITOR, QUANTUM EDGE PRO

The simplest and most accurate way to gauge and forecast the market is to look at money flows.

Specifically, institutional money flows. This is the money that moves stocks, accounting for 70% to 90% of average daily volume.

Not everybody can do it. But thanks to my time on Wall Street, I programmed it in as one of the most important benefits of my Quantum Edge system.

Looking back at the first half of 2025, we see a distinct tale of two quarters. The worst of times, and the best of times… to borrow (and invert) from Charles Dickens. From pain to prosperity.

Money flowed out of stocks in dramatic fashion in the first quarter, and then from April 8 on, selling practically vanished and money poured into stocks.

We can easily see this in the tale of two charts. Here’s the first quarter of the year (actually through the bottom on April 8), when the S&P 500 fell 15%. The green inflow signals (Big Money buys) decreased as red outflow signals spiked, culminating in the historic sell-off after tariffs were announced.

Source: MoneyFlows.com

And now here’s the second quarter (from April 9 on), which is practically the reverse image. The S&P 500 rallied 30% back to new all-time highs, and buy signals shot up while sell signals all but disappeared.

Source: MoneyFlows.com

Stocks can’t and won’t continue at this pace, but if we look at where all that money is going, we see more bullish data indicating a good second half of the year – with some usual choppiness along the way.

This unique ability to see exactly where money is flowing – down to individual stocks – helps us both analyze the market and identify the best stocks to own.

Sector Strength Confirms the Bull

Drilling down into those specific inflows and outflows, I see money pouring into growth stocks. That’s where bull markets are made.

Since May 12, when President Donald Trump announced a stay on tariffs, 84% of Big Money buy signals have been in stocks valued at $50 billion and below. The biggest gains tend to come from these companies. I know Nvidia (NVDA), with its astronomical $3.8 trillion market cap, keeps on trucking, but such cases are rare.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t good stocks with larger capitalizations – we’ll talk about some in just a moment – but it does show the “risk on” mentality from the world’s biggest investors needed to power stocks higher.

I also see that appetite for growth – i.e., making money – looking at my system’s sector rankings. There are noticeable shifts from the April 8 lows through the end of the second quarter as growth sectors strengthened while defense sectors weakened.

Technology is the prime example. It is the engine of bull markets in our digital world, and it climbed from next to last (10 out of 11) on April 8 back to No. 1 on June 30.

Source: MoneyFlows.com

Tech is also the biggest sector. My Quantum Edge system analyzes 256 tech stocks every day for fundamental strength, technical strength, and Big Money inflows.

There are winners, and, of course, there are also duds. So, let me share the highest-rated stocks at the start of the second half of the year.

A Three-Way Tie at the Top

The first half ended with three stocks tied for the top spot with Quantum Scores of 86.2. Two are tech leaders, and one is riding nuclear power’s resurgence.

Palantir Technologies (PLTR) is a software company specializing in Big Data analytics and AI. It serves businesses and governments, and the company has focused heavily on generative AI to mine data and improve decision making.

Shares soared 80% in the first half, making it one of the most popular stocks in the market. In fact, your fellow TradeSmith Daily readers wrote in asking about it, so Lucas Downey and I ran it through our system and analyzed it in last week’s TradeSmith Daily video.

Source: TradeSmith Finance

That Quantum Score of 86.2 is actually a little “too good.” It is just above the top end of our optimum buy range of 70 to 85, so it doesn’t rate a buy.

That’s purely because of the technicals, which at 88.2 have come down slightly from 91.2 last week when we did the video. That’s heading in the right direction but still lofty, and PLTR’s biggest problem right now is still valuation.

Sales and earnings growth are outstanding. Debt is exceptionally low at just 4.8% of equity. And the profit margin sits at a healthy 16.1%.

Shares, however, trade at 224 times this year’s earnings, which is super expensive. I’m as willing as anybody to pay up for great growth, but I balk at that valuation.

Stocks will pull back – probably at some point over the summer – and that could provide a great reset and entry point for PLTR.

Meta Platforms (META) is the second co-champion as we start the second half of 2025. The company formerly known as Facebook gained 26% in the first six months of the year, and shares zoomed 50% off their April lows to end the first half at all-time highs.

Nearly all of Meta’s $165 billion in revenue comes from advertising across its popular apps – Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp. The company is also expanding into AI services as well as augmented and virtual reality.

It’s a different business than Palantir, but the quantitative data is similar.

Source: TradeSmith Finance

Sales and earnings growth are strong. The 37.9% profit margin is excellent, and the 27.3% debt-to-equity is not ideal but not a concern either.

That Technical Score of 91.2 is the yellow flag. Valuation isn’t as frothy as PLTR at 28.1 times this year’s expected earnings, but technicals over 90 are typically a prelude to a pullback.

META could also generate a nice buying opportunity when shares take a breather and/or in broader choppiness.

Vistra (VST) is our third first-half king. It is a utility company, but surging electricity demand for AI and data centers, recent acquisitions, and its status as the second largest nuclear power company in the U.S. helped drive shares up 31% in the first half of the year and 80% since the April lows.

Its Quantum Score is the same as PLTR and META at 86.2, but its Technical Score of 94.1 is even frothier.

Source: TradeSmith Finance

Shares trade at 31.8 times expected earnings, which is high for a utility. And I am also concerned about debt at a hefty 312% of equity. Utilities do carry debt, so it can work, but it can also become a risk factor.

That 75 Fundamental Score is quite good. With power demand not slowing down, VST is another stock to consider on a pullback.

These three stocks made investors a lot of money so far this year, and I see higher prices in the future. That’s great if you own the stock but complicates matters for potential buyers as valuation does become a concern.

One of my favorite setups is to buy elite stocks on pullbacks. Stocks with the Quantum Edge trifecta that gives them the high probability of making money – strong growth, muscular fundamentals, and those all-important Big Money inflows.

These are the kinds of stocks to own for long-term wealth, and I expect great opportunities in the second half of the year based on current data as well as the likelihood of tariff deals, lower taxes, and lower interest rates.

Talk soon,

Jason Bodner
Editor, Quantum Edge Pro