Honestly, if you spent all of 2025 waiting for the "AI bubble" to finally pop, your portfolio probably looks a little sad right now. We've spent months hearing that the party was over. Yet, here we are in January 2026, and the data is telling a completely different story. Some of the stocks with largest gains over the last twelve months didn't just creep up; they absolutely exploded, leaving the "safe" index funds in the rearview mirror.
But it isn't just about Nvidia anymore. That’s the big misconception.
While the "Magnificent Seven" still hog the headlines, the real drama happened in the guts of the market—hardware, cybersecurity, and some weirdly specific biotech plays. If you’re trying to figure out where the money actually went (and where it's heading this year), you have to look past the usual suspects.
The Hardware Revenge: Why WDC and MU Stole the Show
You've probably used a Western Digital hard drive at some point. It’s not exactly "sexy" tech. But in 2025, Western Digital (WDC) became a literal monster, posting a staggering return of roughly 261%.
Why? Because everyone forgot that AI isn't just "magic math" in the cloud. It’s physical. All those Large Language Models (LLMs) need to live somewhere, and that "somewhere" is a massive array of high-capacity storage.
The Storage and Memory Squeeze
- Western Digital (WDC): Up 261.1%. They split their business, focused on NAND flash, and rode the wave of data center expansion.
- Seagate (STX): Not far behind with a 217% gain.
- Micron Technology (MU): Up 178%. Micron benefited from the desperate need for High Bandwidth Memory (HBM).
It’s a classic "picks and shovels" play. While everyone was betting on which AI bot would be the smartest, the smartest investors were betting on the companies making the digital filing cabinets.
Beyond the Chips: The 2025 Underdogs
If you look at the S&P 500 performance from last year, a few names jump out that have nothing to do with ChatGPT. Robinhood (HOOD) is a prime example. After being left for dead following the 2021 meme-stock craze, Robinhood surged over 233% in 2025.
They did it by growing up. They added retirement accounts, credit cards, and became a legitimate hub for the new generation of investors who are now trading more than just Dogecoin.
Then there’s Newmont (NEM). A gold miner. In a year dominated by tech, Newmont managed a 138% gain. Central banks have been hoarding gold like it's the 1800s, and with inflation proving stickier than the Fed liked, "real" assets made a massive comeback.
Alphabet’s Quiet Dominance
Alphabet (GOOGL) actually outperformed most of its peers in the "Mag 7" last year. While Apple and Amazon were sort of just... there, Alphabet notched a 66% to 68% return depending on when you stopped the clock. Their Gemini 3 model finally gave them the "cool factor" they lost to OpenAI, but more importantly, their Cloud business finally started printing serious cash.
The 100% Club: Biotech and Defense in early 2026
We are only a few weeks into 2026, and the leaderboard is already shifting. You've got to look at Europe.
📖 Related: US Dollar to CZK: What Most People Get Wrong About This Exchange Rate
Because of the geopolitical mess in Venezuela and ongoing tensions in the Middle East, defense stocks are pulling "tech-like" numbers. Sweden’s SAAB is up nearly 28% in just the first two weeks of January. Germany’s Rheinmetall is up 22%. These aren't just trades; they are part of what analysts are calling a "defense supercycle."
In the biotech world, small-cap volatility is back with a vengeance. Mineralys Therapeutics (MLYS) finished 2025 up over 203%. They have a blood pressure drug, lorundrostat, that actually met its goals in Phase III trials. In biotech, it’s binary: either the drug works and you're a hero, or it fails and the stock goes to zero. Mineralys won.
Why Most Investors Missed These Gains
The problem is "Recency Bias."
People spent all of 2024 and 2025 waiting for 2022 to happen again. They stayed in cash or short-term Treasuries, waiting for the "inevitable" crash. But the crash never came because earnings—actual, cold-hard profits—kept growing.
Nvidia (NVDA) is the poster child for this. It "only" grew about 30-39% in 2025, which seems small compared to its 2023-2024 run. But look at the scale: it's now the largest company in the world. As of today, January 15, 2026, it’s trading around $187, and it just weathered a massive storm involving Chinese export restrictions on their H200 chips.
The stocks with largest gains were rarely the ones everyone was shouting about on TikTok at the start of the year. They were the ones solving boring problems—like how to store a petabyte of data or how to treat hypertension.
Practical Steps for Your 2026 Strategy
If you're looking at these 200% gains and feeling FOMO, stop. Chasing a stock that already doubled is a great way to lose your shirt. Instead, look at the "Support Crew" of the current trends.
- Check the Infrastructure: If you think AI is still the play, don't just buy the chipmakers. Look at the electrical grid. Companies like Eaton or Vertiv that handle power for data centers are often where the next "quiet" gains live.
- Watch the Rebounds: Look at the 2025 losers. Fiserv and The Trade Desk got hammered last year. If their fundamentals are still solid, they might be the "value" plays of 2026.
- Diversify Into "Real" Things: Gold and copper had a great 2025. With the US pushing for more domestic manufacturing, the raw materials are going to stay in high demand.
- Mind the "Mag 7" Weight: If you own an S&P 500 index fund, you already own a ton of Nvidia and Microsoft. Don't "double dip" by buying more individual shares unless you're okay with massive volatility if the tech sector takes a breather.
The biggest lesson from the last year is that the market doesn't care about your "bubble" theories. It cares about cash flow. Whether it’s a gold mine in Australia or a server rack in Virginia, the money follows the utility.
Keep an eye on the earnings reports coming out in the next few weeks—TSMC already dropped a bombshell today with record profits. That usually means the rest of the tech ecosystem is about to follow suit. Stay nimble, don't get married to a single narrative, and keep your stop-losses tight.