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4 Top-Ranked AI Stock Winners of 2023 With More Room for Growth in 2024

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The year 2023 was pivotal in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) industry, characterized by dynamic company moves, major initiatives and product launches, substantial investments and strategic acquisitions. Companies like Google, Microsoft and Amazon introduced significant updates to their AI services. PwC expects AI technology to boost the global economy by $15.7 trillion by 2030, as quoted on USA Today.

Against this backdrop, AI stocks like NVIDIA Corp (NVDA - Free Report) , Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) , UiPath Inc (PATH - Free Report) and Pros Holdings Inc (PRO - Free Report) have come across as AI stock winners so far this year. These stocks have a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), which indicates further rally is likely for these stocks. Let’s delve a little deeper. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Major AI Product Launches and Updates in 2023

It all started with OpenAI releasing ChatGPT in late November 2022, Microsoft announcing huge investments in OpenAI in January 2023, Google launching Bard Chatbot in February 2023, Microsoft unveiling Bing Chat in Windows 11 and OpenAI continuing to lead the AI revolution with the launch of GPT-4 in March. Then, Google debuted AI-powered search and BARD in May 2023, Nvidia’s market cap hit the $1-trillion mark in late May 2023 on AI euphoria, which boosted the demand for chips.

After that, things in the AI arena strengthened with Anthropic launching CLAUDE 2 in July 2023. OpenAI debuted GPT enterprise in late August 2023. Amazon bet on Anthropic in September. The Biden government signed an AI executive order in October 2023, Amazon announced the launch of its new chatbot – "Q" – in late November 2023 and Google unveiled its most effective Generative AI model, Gemini, in December 2023.

What Lies Ahead in 2024?

As 2023's excitement calms down, the focus shifts to what 2024 holds for generative AI. A wider spread of AI among consumers is expected next year. Bob O’Donnell, president of TECHnalysis, believes 2024 will be crucial for AI, integrating it into daily tools like PCs, smartphones and multimedia platforms, as quoted in a Yahoo Finance article.

AI-Enhanced Consumer Hardware Expected in 2024?

The year 2024 is likely to witness the launch of AI-equipped PCs and other devices, moving some cloud-based AI processes to local devices. For instance, Google's Pixel 8 series, with the Tensor G3 chip, showcases AI-driven features like photo editing and audio filtering. Investors can expect similar advancements from companies like HP, Dell, Lenovo and possibly Apple, per experts quoted on Yahoo Finance.

A Leap Beyond General-Purpose AI Likely in 2024?

Generative AI platforms like ChatGPT have shown versatility across various domains. However, 2024 aims to introduce more specialized and customized AI systems. University of Maryland's Hal Daumé III sees a trend toward data-rich domains, predicting specialized AI applications in weather forecasting, cybersecurity and medical research, as quoted on Yahoo Finance.

Focus Will Remain on Resourcing AI Chip

Nvidia currently leads in AI accelerators and software. However, its chip scarcity has prompted giants like Microsoft, Amazon and Google to develop their own AI chips. This internal development, along with competition from AMD and Intel, signals a more competitive market. Qualcomm is also eyeing a bigger role in the AI chip market.

Winning Stocks in Focus

With AI technology rapidly advancing and becoming increasingly integral to various industries, investors are looking for ways to capitalize on this trend. Below, we highlight a few of such winning AI-focused stocks for investors.

NVIDIA (NVDA - Free Report) – Up 225.5%

NVIDIA is the world leader in visual computing technologies and the inventor of the graphic processing unit, or GPU. The company hails from an upbeat sector (Zacks Rank top 25%) and industry (Zacks Rank top 16%). The stock has seen earnings estimate revision from $3.69 to $4.41 for the upcoming quarter in the past month. As many as 12 out of 14 brokers upped earnings estimates for the quarter.

Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) – Up 161.8%

Meta Platforms is the world’s largest social media platform. The company’s portfolio offering evolved from Facebook to multiple apps like photo and video sharing apps, Instagram and WhatsApp messaging apps owing to acquisitions. The company comes from an upbeat sector (Zacks Rank top 25%) and industry (Zacks Rank top 14%). The stock has seen an upward earnings estimate revision of 2 cents to $4.77 for the upcoming quarter in the past week.

UiPath Inc (PATH - Free Report) – Up 90.5%

UiPath offers an end-to-end platform for automation, combining Robotic Process Automation solutions for digital business operations. The company comes from an upbeat sector (Zacks Rank top 38%) and industry (Zacks Rank top 36%). The stock has seen earnings estimate revision from 14 cents to 15 cents for the upcoming quarter in the past week. Three out of seven analysts upped earnings estimates while none went for downward revision.

Pros Holdings (PRO - Free Report) – Up 51.2%

PROS, a world leader in Pricing and Revenue Optimization Software, today announced that the underwriters of its initial public offering have exercised in full their over-allotment option. The company comes from an upbeat sector (Zacks Rank top 25%) and industry (Zacks Rank top 34%).

 


 

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