Jim Cramer reviews 10 stocks leading the S&P 500 in the second quarter

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Friday analyzed stocks that helped the S&P 500 reach significant gains this year, highlighting the top 10 performers of 2024’s second quarter. Many are involved with energy and data centers.

“It’s incredible, but if you were in alternative energy or the data center you did insanely well this quarter,” he said. “It’s a reminder that if you waited until this market broadened out … let’s just say you missed the biggest winners that propelled the quarter.”

1. Nvidia: The artificial intelligence behemoth topped $3 trillion this month and then surpassed Microsoft last week to briefly become the largest company on the market. Cramer acknowledged that some feel his favorite stock has rallied too much, by he reiterated his “own it, don’t trade it” stance.
2. First Solar: Cramer said he likes the solar sector, and this module maker has been profitable and a low-cost performer.
3. Teradyne: According to Cramer, Teradyne dominates the market when it comes to developing test equipment. The company’s technology helps to make sure in-demand devices like semiconductors work.
4. GE Vernova: This General Electric spinoff is seeing great success because of the robust demand for power, Cramer said.
5. Vistra: Like GE Vernova, power producer Vistra is doing well because all the new data centers currently being built require an enormous amount of power, Cramer said. He added that the company is somewhat unique because it has several nuclear power plants, asserting that they are the only way to get reliable clean energy at scale.
6. Apple: The iPhone maker saw success after it revealed promising AI programs at its Worldwide Developers Conference, according to Cramer.
7. NetApp: Many companies seeing big gains recently do business involving data center buildout, Cramer said. This includes NetApp, which provides storage for hyperscalers like Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft.
8. Monolithic Power Systems: This energy-management company is also performing well as power-guzzling technology continues to proliferate.
9. Broadcom: Cramer said the semiconductor outfit is present in many aspects of the tech sector, but especially in cellphones and the cloud.
10. Arista Networks: Cramer praised Arista Networks’ management and said cloud networking equipment is highly in demand.

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Disclaimer The CNBC Investing Club Charitable Trust holds shares of Broadcom, Nvidia, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft.