Dan Ives is the managing director and global head of technology research at Wedbush Securities. He is a frequent contributor on financial news programming and actively posts his latest stock predictions on social media.
Recently, Ives published his top picks among megacap technology stocks for 2025. Unsurprisingly, many of his choices are among the "Magnificent Seven."
Below, I'll explore individual catalysts that each of these companies contains and make the case for why 2025 could be a great opportunity to buy these stocks hand over fist.
1. Tesla
Tesla (TSLA 2.07%) is probably the most interesting name on Ives' list. For much of 2024, shares of Tesla underperformed the broader market. But beginning in early November, shares started going parabolic. All told, Tesla stock gained 62% in 2024 -- nearly triple that of the S&P 500 and more than double the gains seen in the Nasdaq Composite.
The catalyst that fueled Tesla's rebound? The outcome of the U.S. presidential election.
During the final months of Donald Trump's campaign, Tesla CEO Elon Musk emerged as a steadfast surrogate for the Republican candidate. Following Trump's victory in early November, Ives made it clear that he sees Musk's relationship with the president-elect as a major tailwind for the future of Tesla.
Specifically, Ives thinks that the incoming Trump administration could fast-track Tesla's autonomous driving and robotaxi plans. While I think Ives' outlook makes sense, it's important to note that a lot of upside has already been factored into Tesla's share price following the election results.
NASDAQ: TSLA
Key Data Points
2. Nvidia
Is it really surprising to see Nvidia (NVDA 2.94%) listed as a top idea for 2025?
Last year, Nvidia was the top-performing Magnificent Seven stock -- with shares climbing 171% and the company's valuation gaining more than $2 trillion!
Despite this unprecedented move, Ives is calling for significantly more upside in the chip darling.
This year, Nvidia's biggest tailwind stems from its newest GPU lineup, known as Blackwell. With industry analysts calling for surging demand for Nvidia's new architecture, 2025 is already looking like another milestone year for the semiconductor leader.
With a $4 trillion valuation within reach, investors may want to consider scooping up shares of Nvidia now -- before the company begins reporting official stats on Blackwell and its impact on the business.
3. Microsoft
I see Microsoft (MSFT 0.43%) as one of the safest AI opportunities in big tech. Over the last two years, the company has invested billions into AI infrastructure -- namely through a critically important partnership with OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT.
Microsoft has benefited greatly from ChatGPT, primarily by integrating the service into its Azure cloud computing ecosystem. Despite intense competition from the likes of Amazon, Alphabet, and Oracle, Microsoft has been able to command respectable growth tied directly to its AI initiatives -- a trend that I think is only just beginning to bear fruit.
In addition, Microsoft also has an early lead in one of AI's next big megatrends, agentic AI. The company's agentic AI virtual assistant, called CoPilot, is used by almost 70% of the Fortune 500.
To me, Microsoft has demonstrated an ability to maneuver around the competitive landscape and deserves to be a top choice for AI investors.
Image source: Getty Images.
4. Apple
While Ives has remained bullish on Apple (AAPL 0.96%) for some time, I have my concerns. According to Ives, Apple's new iPhone 16 equipped with Apple Intelligence should inspire customers to upgrade their devices en masse. Although the idea of an iPhone supercycle makes sense, I question how it will play out in reality.
Apple was late to the AI game, and I'm not sure if Apple Intelligence provides enough value add to cause users to upgrade their phones. Remember, Apple's consumer hardware devices are a bit of a luxury. If your old iPhone is still manageable, Apple's AI features might not be enough of a selling point to assume a higher-cost device.
While I'd love to be proven wrong on this one, Apple is the one stock on this list that I'm hesitant about right now.
5. Alphabet
To me, Alphabet (GOOG 0.87%) (GOOGL 0.75%) is the biggest bargain among the five AI stocks I've explored. Similar to Microsoft, Alphabet has a deep ecosystem in which it can integrate all sorts of AI-powered services -- from cloud computing to workplace productivity tools, advertising, streaming, consumer hardware, and more.
Alphabet is an extremely diversified business, and the company's revenue and profit growth are both headed in the right direction.
GOOGL Revenue (Quarterly) data by YCharts
Yet, despite the company's impressive growth and lucrative AI opportunities, Alphabet only trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of 21.9 -- that's lower than the average forward P/E of the S&P 500.
I think investors are remaining overly cautious when it comes to Alphabet, given the intense competition in the cloud space from Microsoft and Amazon, as well as rising competitive forces in advertising from social media platforms offered by Meta Platforms and TikTok.
While I understand these concerns in theory, I think Alphabet's financial results depicted above speak for themselves. To me, an investment in Alphabet will continue to outperform that of the broader market for years to come. I think Alphabet stock is an outright bargain right now and see an opportunity for long-term investors to buy the stock hand over fist.
