Meta description: Updated December 12, 2025 — Wall Street is rotating beyond AI mega-caps after the Fed’s latest cut. Here are high-quality, U.S.-listed stocks to consider now, plus the key risks and catalysts investors are watching.
NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2025 — The U.S. stock market is ending the week with a familiar tension: indexes are near record highs, but leadership is changing. After the Federal Reserve lowered borrowing costs this week, money has flowed into “value” and rate-sensitive areas—while pockets of the AI trade just took fresh hits from earnings and guidance that raised questions about profitability and return on massive AI spending. [1]
For investors searching for the best stocks to buy now in the United States, the message from today’s headlines is clear: “AI at any price” is no longer the only game in town. Buyers are becoming more selective—rewarding durable cash flows, disciplined capital spending, and clear catalysts, while punishing even good results when margins or guidance disappoint. [2]
Below is a news-driven, December 12, 2025 watchlist of U.S.-listed stocks to consider—built around what’s moving markets today, where analysts are seeing value for 2026, and the macro risks that could quickly reshape sentiment.
Important: This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Markets can move quickly, and any “best stocks to buy” list will depend on your time horizon, risk tolerance, and diversification.
What’s happening in the market right now (Dec. 12, 2025)
Several developments from the last 24–48 hours are shaping “buy now” thinking:
- The S&P 500 just logged a fresh record close (Thursday), with investors rotating into sectors like financials and materials as concerns rise about high-flying AI valuations. [3]
- Valuations remain elevated: Reuters cited the S&P 500 trading around 22x expected earnings, above its 10-year average (per LSEG data). [4]
- AI volatility is back in the spotlight: Oracle’s update reignited worries about the spending-to-returns timeline, while Broadcom’s margin commentary fueled “AI bubble” talk again. [5]
- The Fed cut rates this week (a quarter point) and signaled it wants more clarity—while markets are still debating how many additional cuts come next. [6]
- Next week’s macro data could matter more than usual: Reuters reports delayed releases (after a federal government shutdown) bring a “catch-up” burst of jobs data (Tuesday) and CPI (Thursday) that could swing rate expectations and equity leadership. [7]
The result: investors are increasingly building barbell portfolios—holding selective AI winners on one side, and value / dividend / rate-cut beneficiaries on the other.
The playbook for “best stocks to buy now” in December 2025
Today’s market rewards a specific mix of traits:
1) Real cash flows > “promise” (especially in AI)
Reuters’ AI-focused reporting shows investors are scrutinizing whether aggressive capex actually turns into revenue and productivity gains—especially after Oracle flagged a far larger capex outlook and Broadcom warned on margin mix. [8]
2) Leadership is broadening beyond mega-cap tech
This week’s rotation into value sectors and rate-sensitive areas suggests the market is trying to keep rising even if AI leadership softens—an important shift given how heavily tech is weighted in major indexes. [9]
3) Macro still matters
Vanguard’s 2026 outlook highlights a world where growth is supported by AI investment but inflation stays “sticky,” potentially limiting how far rates can fall—exactly the kind of environment where stock selection (and valuation discipline) can matter more than index hugging. [10]
Best stocks to buy now: 12 U.S.-listed names to consider (with today’s news in mind)
These are grouped by theme, not ranked. The common thread is durability + valuation support and/or a clear catalyst—the traits today’s market appears to be rewarding.
Theme A: High-quality compounders with AI tailwinds (but not “AI bubble” balance sheets)
1) Amazon (AMZN)
Barron’s top-stock list for 2026 puts Amazon in the spotlight as a “Magnificent Seven” name with multiple engines—e-commerce, AWS, advertising, and AI initiatives. The key for 2026: AWS demand and margin discipline could matter more than pure “AI hype.” [11]
What to watch: AWS growth trends, AI-related capex efficiency, and ad profitability.
2) Microsoft (MSFT)
In Reuters’ discussion of Oracle’s stumble, investors explicitly contrasted Oracle’s cash-flow constraints with the financial strength of “hyperscalers” such as Microsoft—underscoring why the market often prefers platform-scale balance sheets when AI capex is exploding. [12]
Why it fits now: If AI returns take longer, platforms with resilient free cash flow tend to be better positioned to absorb the wait.
3) Alphabet (GOOGL)
Alphabet shows up in the same “hyperscaler strength” context in Reuters’ coverage, reinforcing that investors are differentiating between firms funding AI with abundant cash generation and those taking on more financial strain to chase scale. [13]
What to watch: AI monetization progress, cloud profitability, and regulatory headlines.
4) Visa (V)
Barron’s includes Visa as a steady grower with resilience even as fintech competition evolves. In a potentially slower-but-not-collapsing 2026, payments leaders often appeal because they can benefit from broad consumer activity without needing perfect macro conditions. [14]
Risk to note: A sharper-than-expected consumer slowdown would pressure volumes.
Theme B: “AI meets real-world franchises” (catalysts you can actually point to)
5) Walt Disney (DIS)
Disney is showing up in two major ways this week:
- Barron’s sees the stock as undervalued relative to premium assets, with upside tied to parks and expansion initiatives. [15]
- Reuters reports Disney is investing $1 billion in OpenAI and licensing characters for use in Sora/ChatGPT image tools—an attention-grabbing move that could influence both creative workflows and product experiments in streaming and short-form content. [16]
What to watch: How Disney manages brand guardrails, union reactions, and whether AI-driven product experiences become a measurable growth lever. [17]
6) Comcast (CMCSA)
Barron’s calls Comcast a classic value setup (low multiple cited in its analysis), with optionality around strategic moves in media and continued broadband cash generation. [18]
Why it fits now: In a market where investors are rotating into cheaper “cash flow stories,” Comcast matches the tone of the tape.
Theme C: Value + dividends + defensives (the rotation beneficiaries)
7) Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY)
Barron’s frames Bristol Myers as a turnaround-value play—highlighting a low earnings multiple in its analysis, a strong pipeline focus, and a dividend that appeals when investors want to be paid to wait. [19]
What to watch: Pipeline milestones and any guidance shifts that change confidence in the turnaround narrative.
8) Exxon Mobil (XOM)
Barron’s includes Exxon as a durable energy major with growth and dividend characteristics that can help stabilize a portfolio if high-valuation tech stays choppy. [20]
Key risk: Energy prices can swing on geopolitics and supply/demand surprises—position sizing matters.
Theme D: Rate-cut beneficiaries and “special situations” (where valuation and catalysts can do the heavy lifting)
9) SL Green Realty (SLG)
Barron’s highlights SL Green as a contrarian, asset-value case—an office landlord tied to Manhattan real estate. These names can be extremely sensitive to interest rates, making them a “rate-cut beneficiary” if financing conditions improve and leasing stabilizes. [21]
What to watch: Office occupancy trends, refinancing terms, and any shift in investor appetite for real assets.
10) Flutter Entertainment (FLUT)
Barron’s includes Flutter as a sports-betting leader with growth potential and improving U.S. market structure dynamics (industry leaders tend to be the most durable as competition consolidates). [22]
Risk: Regulatory changes and promotional intensity can pressure margins.
11) Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS)
Barron’s includes MSG Sports as an undervalued asset play tied to high-profile sports franchises—often less correlated to day-to-day AI tape action and more tied to franchise valuation dynamics and media rights cycles. [23]
What to watch: Any strategic reviews, media-rights developments, and franchise valuation comps.
Theme E: AI infrastructure—high opportunity, high volatility (buy only if you can stomach swings)
12) Broadcom (AVGO)
Broadcom is at the center of today’s AI debate: Reuters reports it projected revenue above expectations, but warned gross margins could fall because a larger mix of AI system/chip revenue is lower margin—triggering another round of “AI bubble” fear. [24]
At the same time, Reuters notes Broadcom cited a $73 billion backlog to ship over the next 18 months and expects AI semiconductor revenue to jump—evidence that demand is still strong even as investors question profitability. [25]
What to watch: Margin trajectory, customer concentration, and how investors price “growth vs. profitability” going into 2026.
Stocks in today’s headlines (and what they signal for “buy now” investors)
Not every mover is a buy—but they reveal what the market cares about:
- Oracle (ORCL): Reuters reports Oracle warned fiscal 2026 capex could be $15 billion higher than it estimated in September, and the stock’s sharp drop reignited concern about AI spending returns and debt/valuation trade-offs. [26]
- Lululemon (LULU): Reuters notes shares jumped after a leadership change and a raised profit forecast—an example of the market still rewarding strong fundamentals and clearer guidance, even during tech volatility. [27]
- Strategy (MSTR): Reuters reports the company could face Nasdaq 100 reshuffle risk, with analysts estimating significant passive outflows if removed—an example of index mechanics becoming a real, near-term catalyst (or risk). [28]
2026 forecasts investors are leaning on (and the risks they’re not ignoring)
Even with record highs, the market’s “next chapter” is being debated loudly:
- Recession tail risk: Business Insider reports Stifel’s base case is a positive 2026, but it warns the S&P 500 could drop about 20% if a recession hits, with Stifel assigning a meaningful probability to that downside scenario. [29]
- Bank forecasts skew bullish: Business Insider also summarizes 2026 S&P 500 targets from major banks, with many calling for additional upside driven by earnings growth—while still acknowledging valuations and AI-spending uncertainty. [30]
- Macro backdrop may limit easy rate cuts: Vanguard’s outlook expects inflation to remain above 2% through 2026 and suggests the Fed may have limited room to cut below a neutral rate estimate—supporting the idea that “multiple expansion” may not be the main driver next year. [31]
- Sector rotation likely persists: Schwab’s outlook expects continued rotations and highlights favorable sector views including Communication Services and Health Care, aligning with the market’s recent move away from narrow mega-cap leadership. [32]
Key catalysts next week that could change the “best stocks to buy now” list fast
Per Reuters, markets are bracing for a dense calendar of delayed data releases:
- U.S. jobs report (Tuesday)
- Consumer Price Index (Thursday)
- Additional data like retail sales that may reshape growth expectations [33]
Why it matters: If inflation surprises higher, rate-cut expectations can fade quickly (pressuring long-duration growth stocks). If jobs data comes in weaker than expected, recession talk can accelerate—often boosting defensives but hurting cyclicals and high-beta names. [34]
How to use this list without getting burned
If you truly want “best stocks to buy now,” the biggest mistake in late-2025 markets is treating any list as a one-shot bet.
Consider a more resilient approach:
- Build around 3–5 core quality names (cash-flow platforms, durable franchises).
- Add 2–4 value/defensive names that can hold up if leadership rotates again.
- Limit high-volatility AI infrastructure positions to sizes you can hold through sharp drawdowns.
- Stagger entries (especially when valuations are elevated and macro data is about to hit). [35]
FAQ: Best stocks to buy now in the U.S. market
Is the AI bubble bursting?
Not necessarily—but investors are clearly becoming more selective. Reuters describes how Oracle’s spending outlook and Broadcom’s margin concerns sparked “AI bubble” chatter, even as many investors still believe AI demand and long-term adoption remain intact. [36]
Why are value stocks getting more attention now?
Because the Fed has started cutting rates again and the market is uneasy about high valuations in parts of tech. Reuters and Schwab both point to rotation away from mega-caps and toward other sectors, while Vanguard argues opportunities may be better outside tech-heavy growth over the medium run. [37]
What’s the single biggest market risk heading into year-end?
A sudden shift in the macro narrative. Reuters highlights how next week’s jobs and inflation data—delayed by a shutdown—could swing rate expectations and volatility, especially with holiday-thinned liquidity. [38]
References
1. www.reuters.com, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.reuters.com, 4. www.reuters.com, 5. www.reuters.com, 6. www.reuters.com, 7. www.reuters.com, 8. www.reuters.com, 9. www.reuters.com, 10. corporate.vanguard.com, 11. www.barrons.com, 12. www.reuters.com, 13. www.reuters.com, 14. www.barrons.com, 15. www.barrons.com, 16. www.reuters.com, 17. www.reuters.com, 18. www.barrons.com, 19. www.barrons.com, 20. www.barrons.com, 21. www.barrons.com, 22. www.barrons.com, 23. www.barrons.com, 24. www.reuters.com, 25. www.reuters.com, 26. www.reuters.com, 27. www.reuters.com, 28. www.reuters.com, 29. www.businessinsider.com, 30. www.businessinsider.com, 31. corporate.vanguard.com, 32. www.schwab.com, 33. www.reuters.com, 34. www.reuters.com, 35. www.reuters.com, 36. www.reuters.com, 37. www.reuters.com, 38. www.reuters.com
