Finding the Top "Strong Buy" Stocks to Buy in 2026

The bulls are fighting to push the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to all-time highs heading into Q4 earnings season, which kicks off next week.

The 2026 earnings outlook is robust, with expansion projected in nearly every pocket of the economy. On top of that, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates again in 2026. These two pillars create a bullish backdrop for the stock market this year.

Investors looking to buy stocks to start 2026 might want to narrow their search to a group of best-in-class stocks.

Let’s quickly explore how investors can use a Zacks screen to help find some of the best Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks out of a group of over 200 highly-ranked companies to consider buying to start 2026 and throughout the year.

Zacks Rank Basics

Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks outperform the market in good and bad times. However, there are over 200 stocks that earn a Zacks Rank #1 at any given time.

Therefore, it’s helpful to understand how to apply filters to the Zacks Rank in order to narrow the list down to a more manageable and tradable set of stocks.

“Strong Buy” Stock Screen Parameters

There are only three items on this screen. But together, these three filters can result in some impressive returns.

• Zacks Rank equal to 1

Starting with a Zacks Rank #1 is often a strong jumping off point because it boasts an average annual return of roughly 24.4% per year since 1988.

• % Change (Q1) Est. over 4 Weeks greater than 0

Positive current quarter estimate revisions over the last four weeks.

• % Broker Rating Change over 4 Week equal to Top # 5

Top 5 stocks with the best average broker rating changes over the last four weeks.

This strategy comes loaded with the Research Wizard and is called bt_sow_filtered zacks rank5. It can be found in the SoW (Screen of the Week) folder.

Here is one of the five stocks that qualified for the Filtered Zacks Rank 5 strategy today…

Buy Soaring AI Chip Technologies Stock PLAB Before a 2026 Breakout

Photronics PLAB is the only pure-play photomask company in the U.S.

The picks-and-shovels artificial intelligence stock skyrocketed to its highest levels in roughly 25 years after it posted impressive financial results on December 10. PLAB’s strong earnings outlook helped it earn its Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

PLAB’s business is becoming more important than ever as chips grow more complex to fuel AI and every other advanced technology on the planet.

Investors can think of a photomask as a high-precision ‘stencil’ or master template—it's a quartz plate with microscopic patterns of electronic circuits etched onto it. These patterns are used to help ‘print’ circuits onto silicon wafers during the production of chips.

The semiconductor technologies company is projected to grow its FY26 earnings by 9% and then post over 10% expansion next year.

“We continue to see positive forecasts from our customers in the U.S. validating our U.S. investment plans, while our Korea capability extension is also anticipated to help diversify our geographic revenue mix and increase our exposure to leading-edge chip designs in the future,” CEO George Macricostas said in prepared Q4 FY25 remarks in early December.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Photronics stock skyrocketed 50% in the past month to its highest levels since the late 1990s/early 2000s. The AI-boosted chip industry firm is attempting to break out to all-time highs in 2026.

Despite its recent charge, PLAB trades 30% below its average Zacks price target. Additionally, all four brokerage recommendations Zacks has are classified as “Strong Buys.” PLAB also trades at a nealry 50% discount to the Zacks Tech sector at 14.9X forward 12-month earnings. 

Get the rest of the stocks on this list and start looking for the newest companies that fit these criteria. It's easy to do. And it could help you find your next big winner. Start screening for these companies today with a free trial to the Research Wizard. You can do it.

Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.

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Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. 

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: www.zacks.com/performance_disclosure

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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