Is this the end of the “Magnificent Seven”? Big Tech stocks have diverged in their performance. Which ones should you choose?

CNBC noted that the stocks of the “Magnificent Seven” companies are no longer moving in lockstep. Now, investors have to be much more selective when choosing stocks from the market’s largest companies, rather than treating them as a single investment idea, the network notes.

While the stocks of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla used to generally rise and fall in tandem, their performance is now diverging more and more. CNBC compared the daily price changes of all the “Magnificent Seven” companies in pairs—a total of 21 pairs—over rolling 60-day periods. It turns out that these stocks are now moving less in lockstep than they have in over 10 years.

However, CNBC emphasizes that the divergence in the stock performance of the “Magnificent Seven” does not indicate a deterioration in the companies’ fundamentals. Overall, Wall Street analysts remain optimistic about each of them. According to LSEG, 58% of analysts recommend buying Apple stock. For Amazon, this figure reaches an impressive 97%; for Alphabet, 92%; for Microsoft, 97%; for Meta, 89%; for Nvidia, 97%; and for Tesla, 50%.

"All of these major technology companies are 'connected to artificial intelligence to varying degrees,'" noted Gil Luria, an analyst at DA Davidson. “Investors now need to be much more selective about which specific large-cap companies they want to hold, rather than buying them all indiscriminately,” he added.

The divergence in stock performance has caused the group as a whole to lag behind the broader market. Since the start of the year, the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF has gained 7%, while the S&P 500 broad-market index has risen by more than 12%. Tesla and Meta are the only members of the “Magnificent Seven” whose stocks have been down since the start of 2026. Meanwhile, only Nvidia and Apple have managed to outperform the S&P 500 in terms of returns.

The widening divergence in the stock performance of the “Magnificent Seven” reflects investors’ growing focus on each company’s “independent fundamental growth drivers,” according to Thomas DiFazio, an ETF strategist at Roundhill Investments. “If you rank these companies as winners and losers in the AI sector, you’ll find that their success varies,” CNBC quotes him as saying. According to DiFazio, “investors are focused on factors specific to individual companies,” including corporate news that provides insight into a business’s ability to thrive in the age of artificial intelligence.

"These are still the best stocks to hold in your portfolio, but now they're starting to diverge and move in different directions," says Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets.

Each company in the “Magnificent Seven” now has its own growth drivers and risk factors. Analysts have examined what drives the stock performance of these seven tech giants and what investors should pay attention to.

— Apple is a prime example of how investors’ attitudes toward companies’ participation in the artificial intelligence race have changed, notes CNBC. Previously, investors “punished” the iPhone maker for its reluctance to sharply increase capital expenditures on AI development. Now, on the contrary, the market is rewarding the company for this restraint.

In 2025, Apple posted the second-worst performance among the “Magnificent Seven”: its stock rose by just 8.9%. Amazon came in last, with a 5.2% increase. Alphabet took the lead, with its stock rising 65.8%. However, in 2026, Apple topped the “Magnificent Seven” with a 28% increase in its stock price.

“The division that has faced the most criticism over the past two years for its lack of an artificial intelligence strategy has now become the leader of the entire group. And that’s Apple,” Woods noted. “The company continues to successfully do what it does best—release products and develop the App Store.” According to him, Apple is “a tortoise that is steadily moving forward in this race.” Woods also compared the company to a “technology utility” and a manufacturer of “everyday consumer goods,” since its devices and services are deeply integrated into daily life.

Luria, in turn, called Apple's stock a "safe haven from the investment frenzy surrounding AI."

— Shares of chipmaker Nvidia are showing heightened volatility amid concerns about the sustainability of demand for chips and a possible reduction in capital expenditures by companies developing AI. The stock peaked on October 6 but has since lost more than 13%. Nevertheless, Woods believes that Nvidia shares remain “relatively cheap, even by historical standards.” In his view, the stock is currently undergoing a “consolidation phase” following its previous rally. The strategist takes a positive view of Nvidia’s outlook, pointing to continued demand for its chips.

— Alphabet. According to Woods, the technical picture for Alphabet’s stock has deteriorated following the rally from March through May. Therefore, the company’s quarterly results and management’s outlook—which will be released after U.S. markets close on October 28—take on particular importance. Although Google’s search business remains Alphabet’s strength, Woods is closely monitoring competition from other AI platforms and assessing whether the company’s stock can resume steady growth.

— According to Woods, Amazon’s stock is moving “slowly but surely,” though it isn’t showing a consistent trend. “It’s not that the company’s stock is performing poorly. But it’s not performing particularly well either. It’s just treading water,” the strategist noted (over the past month, Amazon’s stock has risen by about 3%, while over the past six months, it has fallen by 2%). Amazon’s cloud business, Amazon Web Services (AWS), is of key importance to the company, as it accounts for the bulk of its profits. In the second quarter, revenue from Amazon’s cloud division grew by 37% compared to the same period last year. Although this represents solid growth, it lags behind competitors’ results. Microsoft Azure’s revenue increased by 43% year-over-year in the last quarter, while Google Cloud posted an 82% jump.

— In September, Meta’s stock surged amid the buzz surrounding its new personal AI assistant, Muse, which posted high download numbers on the App Store and Google Play. Thomas DiFazio, a strategist at Roundhill Investments, noted that investors are particularly interested in how Muse’s growing popularity will translate into revenue and profits for the company. In his view, the new consumer app may have already had a positive impact on the stock’s performance.

However, after Facebook and Instagram’s parent company reported negative free cash flow and raised the lower end of its full-year capital expenditure forecast, the stock began to decline. Investors are concerned that the company may need more time than expected to generate attractive returns on its large-scale capital investments, according to CNBC.

— Microsoft, a software developer and cloud service provider, has managed to recover from a previous wave of concerns that artificial intelligence would undermine its software development business. However, according to Woods, the company’s stock now faces a key technical hurdle: it must break through the $530–550 range. He says selling pressure could prevent the stock from rising further.

DiFazio called the Azure cloud platform a key driver of Microsoft’s growth that investors are watching closely. The company’s quarterly results and management’s forecasts, which will be released Wednesday evening, could determine whether the stock will break above $550. During trading on October 28, the stock fell to $527.

— Speaking about the “Magnificent Seven,” Woods noted that Tesla “ has fallen far behind”the other members of the group. According to him, Tesla’s investment appeal increasingly depends on opportunities outside the electric vehicle market, including in robotics. Luria also questions whether Tesla’s inclusion in the “Magnificent Seven” is justified. In his view, the company’s market valuation includes an “Elon Musk premium.”

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor