Perhaps it’s not all too surprising to witness the S&P 500 run into turbulence after two of the best years for stock gains in recent memory. Indeed, it’s quite rare to have two consecutive years of gains north of 20%. Collectively, stocks soared close to 50% in just two years.
Clearly, the pace was unsustainable, given the S&P 500’s longer-term average return of around 10%. And while artificial intelligence (AI) and the industrial revolution it’ll create could send productivity through the roof, long-term investors know that markets tend to revert back to the mean after prolonged periods of either overexuberance or pessimism.
While Donald Trump’s tariffs have changed the near-term narrative for many firms scrambling to make structural changes to dodge and weave past the endless number of jabs, I do think that long-term investors should remain focused on playing the long-term game. Indeed, that may not entail jumping into the deep end of the value waters just yet. But it does mean being prepared for more wild swings in a rocky year that certainly seems to be making up for the euphoric ride higher we enjoyed since the market bottom in 2022.
In this piece, we’ll check in on a new slate of winners that have stood tall so far in 2025. With modest valuations, plenty of promise, and the ability to move higher without depending on a timely trade deal between the U.S. and China (or some other nation), the following names could make for great picks as one rebalances to skate towards where the puck is headed next.
CVS
Things have felt a lot more bullish for shares of managed health and pharmacy retail chain firm CVS (NYSE:CVS | CVS Price Prediction) of late. Year to date, the stock is up more than 53%. And while the comeback year was a long time coming for the perennial underperformer that suffered a nearly 60% fall between 2022 and 2024, I still view the name as a deeply-discounted dividend stock that’s more than worth owning in today’s tariff-troubled environment.
The first-quarter earnings results didn’t just top expectations; they were blowout results that may represent a turning point in a name that may finally have what it takes to gain, even if the rest of the stock market sinks. Add the guidance hike into the equation, and the stage certainly does seem set for a red-hot bull run that’ll be tough to stop in its tracks.
At the time of writing, shares boast a nice 4.0% dividend yield and trade at 16.19 times trailing price-to-earnings (P/E). With the Trump administration hiking payment rates for Medicare insurers next year, CVS and the broader basket of health insurers seem to be looking up again, even if things are looking down for the rest of the market. With a 0.60 beta, CVS stock looks like a lowly corrected play for those looking to dampen the market’s choppy moves.
Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) shares may have recently corrected 17% off their recent highs, but they’re still up close to 6% year to date and more than 46% in the past year. This latest pullback may be a blunder on Mr. Market’s part, as the biotech titan recently came off some stellar quarterly earnings results.
Undoubtedly, Trump tariffs and policy changes could make for a rather wild ride going into the summer. Still, the expected tariff impact is “manageable” and already seems to be baked into the new, freshly-cut full-year earnings guidance, at least according to Gilead’s CFO, Andrew Dickinson.
With plans to spend a whopping $32 billion in U.S. manufacturing and R&D through 2030 (expected to create hundreds of direct jobs), perhaps the firm Gilead is better equipped than its peers as tariffs and big changes spread to the healthcare sector. As some opt to sell in the face of uncertainty, brave dip-buyers may have a second chance to get into the low-beta (0.28) healthcare juggernaut while it’s yielding more than 3.2%.
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