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I’m pretty happy with the mix of S&P 500 and FTSE 100 stocks I own at the moment. But I’m always looking to improve my investment portfolio so I thought I’d ask ChatGPT for the best five stocks from these indexes to own in 2026.
Here’s a look at what it gave me…
ChatGPT’s stock picks for 2026
Before I highlight the five stocks that ChatGPT gave me, it’s worth touching on the flaws of using this technology for stock research.
For a start, ChatGPT doesn’t seem to do much/any analysis itself. It simply steals investment ideas from other websites (like The Motley Fool).
Second, you never know where it’s getting its data from. So, it’s hard to trust the metrics it throws up (eg price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio and dividend yield).
Third, it didn’t ask me about my goals or risk tolerance. The best stocks for me could be very different to the best stocks for an older or younger investor.
Looking beyond all these flaws though, the five stocks it listed were:
- Microsoft
- Alphabet
- Apple
- Legal & General Group
- Phoenix Group
Going back to the first flaw I mentioned, it really hasn’t offered much originality here. It has simply selected three of the most popular S&P 500 stocks and thrown in two of the highest-yielding dividend stocks in the FTSE 100.
Should I tweak my portfolio?
So, will I be making any portfolio changes based on this list? Probably not.
I already hold the first three stocks there. They’ve been great long-term investments for me and I see them as ‘core’ holdings (although I’m not expecting huge gains in 2026 as they’ve had a good run recently).
I don’t hold Legal & General or Phoenix Group at the moment. But I’m unlikely to buy them for my portfolio in the near term as I’m not looking for dividend income right now and I think I can get higher returns elsewhere in the market.
What about this stock?
I’ll point out that I’m a little bit surprised that ChatGPT didn’t mention Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). When I look at my portfolio today, this stock (one of my largest holdings currently) strikes me as one of the best overall bets in terms of risk and reward.
Today, Amazon is a very diversified company with a lot of growth potential. Not only is it the global leader in online shopping but it’s also an industry leader in cloud computing, AI (it now has its own chips), digital advertising, digital healthcare, self-driving cars, and space satellites.
Meanwhile, the valuation looks quite attractive today. Currently, the stock is trading on a forward-looking price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of about 28, which is near a historical low.
One other thing worth mentioning is that this year, Amazon has lagged other Big Tech stocks like Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet. So, it could potentially play catch-up in 2026.
Of course, it’s not perfect. One big risk here is competition in areas such as cloud computing, AI, and online shopping.
Overall though, I think it looks attractive at current levels. In my view, this is one of the best stocks to consider owning in 2026.
