Goldman Says These Stocks Are Top Ideas in the Wake of Their 2Q Earnings

 Goldman Says These Stocks Are Top Ideas in the Wake of Their 2Q Earnings

## Introduction: The Quarter That Changed the Game

Earnings season is always a moment of truth for Wall Street. But the second quarter of 2026 was different. It wasn't just about beating estimates or missing them. It was about **who is positioned for the next phase of the market**—and who isn't.

On August 15, 2026, Goldman Sachs delivered its verdict.

The investment bank has identified a select group of stocks that, in the wake of their second-quarter earnings reports, still have plenty of room to run. These aren't just companies that posted good numbers. They're companies that, according to Goldman's analysts, have **durable growth stories, margin expansion potential, and exposure to the most powerful secular trends in the economy today**——from the data center buildout to AI-powered productivity.

The list includes **StubHub, Loar Holdings, Toast, MasTec, and Quanta Services**. But the story doesn't stop there. Goldman has also reshuffled its prestigious U.S. Conviction List, adding Microsoft and five other names while removing Broadcom and others. And the firm has named its top hardware stocks amid the AI demand surge, with Dell Technologies leading the pack.

Let's break down exactly what Goldman is buying, why they're buying it, and what it means for your portfolio.

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## The Five Post-Earnings Top Picks

### StubHub: The Ticket Giant With More Room to Run

StubHub has had a rocky year. The ticket-reselling platform went public in late 2025, and the stock has fallen more than 60% since its IPO. In the second quarter, the company reported a 33% revenue increase to $573.1 million, driven by the World Cup, but failed to turn a profit due to rising costs.

So why is Goldman bullish?

The investment bank sees **StubHub as a market leader with a massive addressable market**. The live events industry is still recovering and growing, and StubHub's platform—with its global reach and liquidity—is difficult to replicate. Goldman believes the company's adjusted EBITDA nearly doubling to $106 million in Q2 demonstrates the underlying strength of the business.

The stock is down, but Goldman sees that as an opportunity. With the company's balance sheet improving—net leverage fell to 3 times trailing adjusted EBITDA, down from 4.5 times at the end of 2025—the bank believes StubHub is well-positioned for long-term growth.

### Loar Holdings: The Aerospace Compounder

Loar Holdings might not be a household name, but it's exactly the kind of company Goldman loves: a **specialized aerospace and defense component parts manufacturer with strong growth across its end-markets**.

Analyst Noah Poponak is sticking with Loar following its recent earnings report. Why? "The 2026 guidance ranges for revenue, EBITDA and EPS are all ahead of consensus," he said. Goldman also sees "strong growth across the end-markets, new business win potential, margin expansion opportunity, high free cash conversion and deployment towards accretive acquisitions".

Loar shares are up 14% this year and remain on Goldman's **prestigious conviction buy list**. Poponak called it a "long-term compounder" with upside to near-term estimates.

For investors, Loar represents a classic **"picks and shovels" play on aerospace and defense spending**——a sector that tends to be resilient regardless of the economic cycle.

### Toast: The Fintech Restaurateur With AI Tailwinds

Toast has been a volatile stock, but Goldman's analysts led by Will Nance came away impressed by the fintech restaurant company's recent solid earnings.

The bank acknowledges that some investors might be concerned about the company's investment spending. But Goldman sees those fears as overdone. "We think TOST management did a good job tempering that message with the upbeat commentary around structurally higher margins in the business going forward," the analysts said.

Nance pointed to other positive catalysts, including **better visibility with customer acquisition costs and improved subscriptions for the company's AI-powered marketing platform, Toast IQ Grow**.

"With shares now pricing in significant growth related investments and depressed margins in hardware in the near term, we believe the risk reward is positive and remain Buy rated," Goldman said. The stock is up 16% over the past month.

Toast is a bet on the **digitization of the restaurant industry** and the growing adoption of AI-powered tools by small and medium businesses.

### MasTec: Buy the Dip on the Data Center Buildout

MasTec's quarterly report was mixed, which sent the stock down. But Goldman analyst Neil Mehta says that's exactly the opportunity.

"Buy the dip," Mehta wrote. The infrastructure and engineering company remains **well-positioned for the data center buildout boom**. As cloud providers and AI companies pour billions into new data centers, MasTec is one of the companies that builds them.

"As we look longer-term, we expect MTZ to continue winning key projects, particularly in pipelines and infrastructure, supporting EBITDA margin expansion and an EPS [compound annual growth rate] between 2025-2030 of ~17%," Mehta wrote.

Goldman lowered its price target to $409 per share from $508, but said it still believes in the stock and so should investors. "Amid continued focus on margin growth for MTZ, we see the inclusion of large projects over the long-term on both the pipelines and infrastructure sides of the business as main drivers of EBITDA margin expansion," Mehta said.

The stock is up 37% this year. For investors willing to look past short-term volatility, MasTec offers exposure to one of the most powerful trends in the economy: the physical infrastructure required for the digital age.

### Quanta Services: The Power Demand Play

Quanta Services rounds out the list, and Goldman's thesis is straightforward: **the company is a key beneficiary of the power demand theme**.

"We continue to see PWR as a key beneficiary of the power demand theme, as we estimate an EPS CAGR between 2026-2030 of ~19.5% from continued growth in both the Electric and Underground & Infrastructure businesses," Goldman said.

What's driving this? The same force that's driving MasTec: the data center buildout. But Quanta is more focused on the **energy infrastructure side**——the power grids, transmission lines, and underground utilities that will be needed to power the AI revolution.

With electricity demand projected to surge as data centers multiply, Quanta is positioned to capture a significant share of that spending.

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## The Conviction List Shake-Up: Microsoft In, Broadcom Out

Beyond the five post-earnings picks, Goldman has made significant changes to its **U.S. Conviction List**——the bank's highest-conviction stock ideas.

### The New Additions

Goldman added six names to the list in its August update:

- **Microsoft (MSFT)** : Analyst Gabriela Borges highlighted the company's position as the AI revolution shifts from training and infrastructure toward "the early stages of 'how to make AI work in enterprises'". She noted that June-quarter results marked a meaningful step in reversing a period of underperformance, with Azure acceleration, improving AI unit economics, and Copilot monetization. She expects EPS growth to accelerate from 12% in fiscal 2027 to more than 20% by fiscal 2029.

- **Applied Materials (AMAT)** : Goldman believes the semiconductor equipment maker is well-positioned to gain share at top DRAM makers and leading foundries, given its exposure to deposition and etch tools.

- **Delta Air Lines (DAL)** : The firm sees the carrier "best positioned to capitalize on the industry's newfound pricing power," calling for 300 basis points of margin expansion over two years.

- **O'Reilly Automotive (ORLY)** : Goldman flagged the auto parts retailer's share gains in the "Do it for Me" market.

- **Viking Holdings (VIK)** : Analyst Lizzie Dove believes the cruise company's differentiated geographic exposure and higher-income customer base should "more than offset a choppier cruise environment".

- **United Parcel Service (UPS)** : The bank sees a revenue and profit inflection at UPS after three years of erosion.

### The Removals

Goldman removed **Broadcom, Dick's Sporting Goods, Johnson & Johnson, and ServiceNow** from the list. The removals signal that the bank sees better opportunities elsewhere——particularly in companies that are benefiting from the "broadening market" rather than just the AI trade.

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## The Hardware Picks: Dell, HPE, and NetApp Lead the AI Infrastructure Trade

If there's one theme that runs through Goldman's top picks, it's **AI infrastructure**. The investment bank has identified Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and NetApp as its top three picks in the U.S. hardware sector.

### Dell Technologies (DELL)

Dell is Goldman's top hardware pick, with a Buy rating and a 12-month price target of **$510, up from $500**. The stock has been on a tear, outperforming Goldman's hardware coverage by **168%** from April 1 through August 7, 2026, compared to 136% for IT hardware coverage and 18% for the S&P 500.

The firm expects second-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue of $44.8 billion, with **75% year-over-year growth in its Infrastructure Solutions Group segment** and 20% growth in Client Solutions Group. Goldman projects non-GAAP earnings per share of $4.96, above the high end of guidance.

The key driver? **AI server demand**. Dell recently announced its new PowerEdge XE8812 server featuring Nvidia's Vera Rubin architecture. As enterprises and cloud providers race to build AI capacity, Dell is a direct beneficiary.

### Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)

HPE is Goldman's second hardware pick, with a Buy rating and a 12-month price target of **$75, down from $79**. The stock gained **122%** from April 1 through August 7, 2026, versus 18% for the S&P 500.

The firm expects third-quarter fiscal 2026 revenue of $12.0 billion, above consensus estimates, driven by **22% year-over-year growth in Cloud and AI and 77% growth in Networking**. Goldman projects non-GAAP EPS of $0.94, slightly above the high end of guidance.

HPE is benefiting from AI buildouts at hyperscalers through its networking portfolio and accelerating demand for general-purpose compute. The company also announced that Vultr selected it for large-scale AI datacenter deployments and expanded its quantum computing partnerships.

### NetApp (NTAP)

NetApp rounds out the hardware trio, with a Buy rating and a 12-month price target of **$210, up from $200**. The stock gained **86%** from April 1 through August 7, 2026, versus 18% for the S&P 500.

NetApp is a leader in data storage and management, and as AI workloads generate and consume vast amounts of data, the company is well-positioned to capture a significant share of the spending.

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## The Bigger Picture: Why These Stocks Now

### The "Broadening Market" Thesis

Goldman's picks reflect a broader investment thesis: **the market is broadening beyond the Magnificent Seven**. After years of dominance by a handful of tech giants, investors are looking for opportunities in other sectors——industrial, financial, and even travel.

The Conviction List additions tell the story: Microsoft represents the maturing phase of AI, Applied Materials is the semiconductor equipment backbone, Delta is a cyclical recovery play, O'Reilly is a defensive consumer play, Viking is a high-end travel bet, and UPS is a logistics turnaround story. **Diversification is back in fashion**.

### The Data Center Buildout

Multiple picks——MasTec, Quanta Services, Dell, HPE, and NetApp——are all exposed to the **data center buildout**. This is the physical infrastructure that underpins the AI revolution. And it's only going to accelerate.

### The AI Maturation Phase

Goldman's addition of Microsoft to the Conviction List signals a view that the AI trade is entering a new phase. The focus is shifting from building the models to **deploying them in enterprises**. Companies that can help businesses actually use AI—like Microsoft with its Copilot products—are becoming increasingly valuable.

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## Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

### 1. What stocks did Goldman Sachs recommend after second-quarter earnings?

Goldman Sachs named five stocks as top ideas following their second-quarter earnings reports: **StubHub, Loar Holdings, Toast, MasTec, and Quanta Services**. The bank also added Microsoft, Applied Materials, Delta Air Lines, O'Reilly Automotive, Viking Holdings, and United Parcel Service to its U.S. Conviction List.

### 2. Why is Goldman bullish on StubHub despite its recent loss?

Goldman sees StubHub as a market leader in the live events industry with a massive addressable market. The company's adjusted EBITDA nearly doubled to $106 million in Q2, demonstrating the underlying strength of the business. The stock's decline presents a buying opportunity.

### 3. What is Goldman's top hardware stock pick?

**Dell Technologies** is Goldman's top hardware pick, with a Buy rating and a 12-month price target of $510, up from $500. The stock has outperformed Goldman's hardware coverage by 168% since April.

### 4. Why did Goldman add Microsoft to its Conviction List?

Goldman sees Microsoft as well-positioned as the AI revolution shifts from training and infrastructure toward "how to make AI work in enterprises." The bank expects Azure acceleration, improving AI unit economics, and Copilot monetization to drive EPS growth from 12% in fiscal 2027 to more than 20% by fiscal 2029.

### 5. What is the "data center buildout" theme?

The data center buildout refers to the massive investment in physical infrastructure—data centers, power grids, networking equipment, and storage—required to support the AI revolution. Companies like MasTec, Quanta Services, Dell, HPE, and NetApp are all beneficiaries.

### 6. Which stocks did Goldman remove from its Conviction List?

Goldman removed **Broadcom, Dick's Sporting Goods, Johnson & Johnson, and ServiceNow** from its U.S. Conviction List.

### 7. What is the "broadening market" thesis?

The "broadening market" thesis suggests that after years of dominance by a handful of tech giants, investors are increasingly looking for opportunities in other sectors——industrial, financial, travel, and logistics. Goldman's Conviction List additions reflect this shift.

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## Conclusion: Following the Smart Money

Goldman Sachs' post-earnings stock picks offer a window into how one of the world's most sophisticated investment banks is positioning for the next phase of the market.

The common threads are clear: **AI infrastructure** (Dell, HPE, NetApp, MasTec, Quanta Services), **enterprise AI adoption** (Microsoft, Toast), **market leadership** (StubHub, Loar Holdings), and **cyclical recovery** (Delta, Viking, UPS).

For American investors, the message is simple: the market is broadening, and the opportunities are becoming more diverse. The AI trade isn't over——it's just entering a new phase. And the companies that build the physical infrastructure, deploy the technology in enterprises, and dominate their markets are the ones that Goldman believes will lead the way.

As always, do your own research. But when Goldman speaks, it's worth listening.

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## Disclaimer

*This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. All views expressed are based on the analysis of publicly available information, including analyst reports, media reports, and research. The author does not endorse any specific investment strategies or stock recommendations mentioned. Investing in financial markets involves significant risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Before making any investment decisions, please consult with a qualified financial advisor who can evaluate your specific situation. The author may hold positions in some of the securities mentioned and has no obligation to disclose changes in such holdings.*