Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide. The company offers iPhone, a line of smartphones; Mac, a line of personal computers; iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets; and wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod. It also provides AppleCare support and cloud services; and operates various platforms, including the App Store that allow customers to discover and download applications and digital content, such as books, music, video, games, and podcasts. In addition, the company offers various services, such as Apple Arcade, a game subscription service; Apple Fitness+, a personalized fitness service; Apple Music, which offers users a curated listening experience with on-demand radio stations; Apple News+, a subscription news and magazine service; Apple TV+, which offers exclusive original content; Apple Card, a co-branded credit card; and Apple Pay, a cashless payment service, as well as licenses its intellectual property. The company serves consumers, and small and mid-sized businesses; and the education, enterprise, and government markets. It distributes third-party applications for its products through the App Store. The company also sells its products through its retail and online stores, and direct sales force; and third-party cellular network carriers, wholesalers, retailers, and resellers. Apple Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Apple Inc.

Key Points
Apple and Bank of America remain 21.4% and 9.6% of Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio, respectively.
Berkshire purchased Alphabet shares for the first time in the third quarter.
Alphabet achieved its first-ever $100 billion quarter in the third quarter.
After leading Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B) for 60 years, Warren Buffett is stepping down as CEO at the end of this year at the age of 95. During that span, Berkshire Hathaway has become the poster child for conglomerate holding companies and has been a routine market-beating stock for its investors.
Leading up to Buffett's departure, Berkshire has been making moves, primarily on the selling side. Notably, it reduced its stake in Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) quite significantly in the past couple of years.
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As of the end of the third quarter, Berkshire Hathaway has reduced its Apple shares to just over 238 million, representing 21.4% of its stock portfolio. It has reduced its Bank of America shares to just over 568 million, making up 9.6% of its stock portfolio.
Arguably more notable than Berkshire Hathaway's recent sales, though, is a recent investment made in Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL) because the company has historically steered clear of high-growth tech companies. Now, as Buffett nears the end of his time as CEO, the company owns around 17.8 million shares of the tech giant.
Why the reduction in Apple and Bank of America shares?
Berkshire Hathaway hasn't released an official "this is why we made these moves" statement, but there are two main reasons they make sense. In Apple's case, its valuation relative to projected earnings growth is starting to look a little disconnected.
Apple is trading at 33.6 times its projected earnings over the next 12 months, which is higher than the other "Magnificent Seven" stocks except Tesla and Nvidia. That's a high premium for a company whose earnings have been relatively modest in recent quarters.
In Bank of America's case, this was likely a time to take profits from a stock that Berkshire has made tens of billions of dollars from. Buffett's company began its significant stake in Bank of America in 2011, and since then, the stock is up markedly.
Selling those shares now is a chance to lock in huge profits at a favorable corporate tax rate, which is likely to be higher if (or rather when) it's adjusted. With the profits from both sales, Berkshire Hathaway has increased its large stake in U.S. Treasury bills, which now stands at over $320 billion.
Berkshire Hathaway's entrance into the AI world
Buffett has publicly said that he regrets not investing in Alphabet years ago after noticing that insurance company Geico (a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary) was paying Alphabet $10 per click on its Google ads. But you know what they say: Better late than never.
Alphabet is one of the few tech companies in Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio, but there's a case that it could be the most promising, especially as it solidifies its position as a key player in artificial intelligence (AI).
It has pioneered key AI research, is creating chips that should challenge Nvidia's current stronghold, owns a network of data centers, and has consumer-facing apps like its generative AI tool Gemini, which is receiving regular praise as a top-of-the-line option.
I don't think Berkshire Hathaway made this investment solely because of AI, but I imagine it helped seal the deal with the direction the technology is going.
When in doubt, follow the cash
Buffett and his managers have always been fans of cash-flow-heavy businesses, which isn't always the case with high-growth tech stocks. However, when it comes to Alphabet, it's most definitely the case. In the third quarter, it achieved its first-ever $100 billion quarter ($102.3 billion, to be precise) and generated nearly $24.5 billion in free cash flow.
Revenue is important, but free cash flow is more noteworthy in some cases because it's money Alphabet can use for things like expanding its business, making acquisitions, buying back shares, and paying dividends. It also helps that the company ended the third quarter with nearly $98.5 billion of cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, giving it a lot of leeway to invest aggressively in its business.
Alphabet has a strong balance sheet, a competitive moat in Google Search, and recently began paying a dividend. Those are three boxes the company checks that could further explain why Berkshire Hathaway chose to make the move now.
Should you invest $1,000 in Alphabet right now?
Before you buy stock in Alphabet, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Alphabet wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $499,978!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,126,609!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 971% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 195% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.
*Stock Advisor returns as of December 8, 2025
Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Stefon Walters has positions in Apple. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Warren Buffett Is Dumping Apple and Bank of America Shares and Buying This Red-Hot AI Stock to End 2025

Key Points
Alphabet has been on a winning streak, delivering revenue growth and stock price performance in recent weeks.
A court ruling also represented good news for the company and its shareholders.
Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL), like other tech stocks, traveled through difficult times and better times this year. The stock slipped this spring amid concern about the impact of U.S. import tariffs on corporate earnings. But as President Donald Trump negotiated with other countries, this pressure eased.
The company also faced the challenge of an antitrust suit in the U.S., but a ruling in September averted the worst-case scenario -- and this decision offered Alphabet a significant boost. Since, the stock has gained nearly 50%, and just recently, Alphabet did something it hasn't done in seven years. Is it time to buy this top tech stock? Let's find out.
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First, though, let's catch up on the Alphabet story so far. This is the company behind something you may use and rely on every day: I'm talking about Google Search, the world's most popular search engine. It's steadily held onto about 90% share of the market. Google, through advertising across its platform, fuels Alphabet's revenue growth, but this isn't the only revenue driver.
Alphabet also is the owner of Google Cloud, one of the world's major cloud service providers, and that business is growing in the double digits.
On top of this, Alphabet's investment in artificial intelligence (AI) is helping the company improve its business -- for example, streamlining the advertising experience. Alphabet has developed its own large language model, Gemini, to apply to its own needs and offer to clients through Google Cloud. The cloud provider also offers many AI products and services, from chips to a fully managed service for the development of generative AI, and this has fueled growth in recent quarters.
In the latest quarter, for example, Alphabet said demand for AI infrastructure and generative AI powered a 34% gain in cloud revenue.
The elimination of a big risk
The major weight on all of this was the U.S. antitrust suit -- the risk was a potential breakup of revenue-driver Google. That risk was eliminated when a federal judge decided that Alphabet could maintain its ownership of its Google Chrome browser, and the company now faces lesser penalties.
All of this, along with a reasonable valuation, has helped boost Alphabet shares in recent months -- and help the company do something it hasn't done in seven years. On Nov. 21, Alphabet's market value soared past that of software giant Microsoft for the first time since 2018. Back then, both companies' market capitalizations were about $800 billion -- now, they've surpassed $3 trillion.
Alphabet has maintained its market cap gain, and now at $3.8 trillion, it's the biggest company after Nvidia and Apple.
Now, let's return to our question: Does this make Alphabet a stock to buy? It's key to keep in mind that a high market cap doesn't automatically translate into a buying opportunity. A company may have reached such a level but could now be overvalued or face new headwinds -- or it may not be the right fit for your portfolio.
Why a high market cap may be positive
Of course, recent gains in market cap might be positive -- they could be the result of good news that prompted investors to pile into the stock. And maintaining a high market cap over time shows sustained demand for the shares.
But, before investing, it's most important to consider a company's earnings track record, financial health, and future prospects -- and also take a look at valuation. In the case of Alphabet, there's reason to be optimistic about all of these points. The company has delivered growth in revenue and profit over time, the AI opportunity is in its early days so could spark significant growth in the quarters to come, and today, Alphabet still is reasonably priced -- it trades for 30x forward earnings estimates, which is lower than many of its AI peers.
All of this makes this stock that's roared past Microsoft a fantastic buy right now.
Should you invest $1,000 in Alphabet right now?
Before you buy stock in Alphabet, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Alphabet wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $499,978!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,126,609!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 971% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 195% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.
*Stock Advisor returns as of December 8, 2025
Adria Cimino has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Alphabet Just Did Something It Hasn't Done in 7 Years. Time to Buy?

Looking at units outstanding versus one week prior within the universe of ETFs covered at ETF Channel, the biggest outflow was seen in the Schwab US Broad Market ETF, where 5,550,000 units were destroyed, or a 0.4% decrease week over week. Among the largest underlying components of SCHB, in morning trading today Nvidia is down about 2.9%, and Apple is lower by about 0.9%.
And on a percentage change basis, the ETF with the biggest outflow was the Direxion Daily MSFT Bear 1X Shares, which lost 325,000 of its units, representing a 37.1% decline in outstanding units compared to the week prior.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

SCHB, MSFD: Big ETF Outflows

Comparing units outstanding versus one week ago at the coverage universe of ETFs at ETF Channel, the biggest inflow was seen in the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund, which added 36,250,000 units, or a 20.2% increase week over week. Among the largest underlying components of DGRW, in morning trading today Microsoft is up about 0.7%, and Apple is lower by about 0.9%.
And on a percentage change basis, the ETF with the biggest increase in inflows was the COIO ETF, which added 20,000 units, for a 40.0% increase in outstanding units.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

DGRW, COIO: Big ETF Inflows

Rule Breaker Investing Mailbag: Be a for Person, Not an Against Person

Key Points
Nvidia's success throughout the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution rests almost entirely on its chip dominance.
Alphabet's custom tensor processing units (TPUs) are gaining momentum from AI hyperscalers.
Some investors worry that Nvidia could be dethroned by Alphabet in the chip industry.
For the last three years, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has been the most dominant company in the artificial intelligence (AI) landscape. The company's graphics processing units (GPUs) are the backbone on which generative AI is developed.
Hyperscalers including OpenAI, Oracle, Meta Platforms, and cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have collectively spent hundreds of billions of dollars clustering Nvidia GPUs inside of data centers to build their AI infrastructure.
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While Advanced Micro Devices is largely perceived as Nvidia's chief rival in the AI chip market, a new threat is emerging: Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) (NASDAQ: GOOG). The internet giant is making waves in the semiconductor industry thanks to rising interest in its custom hardware, known as tensor processing units (TPUs).
Let's take a look at what Alphabet's entrance in the chip market means for Nvidia as investments in AI infrastructure continue to unfold. Should Nvidia investors be worried? Read on to find out.
What is the difference between a GPU and a TPU?
Nvidia's GPUs are versatile pieces of hardware. These chips are designed to work in clusters in parallel with the company's CUDA software architecture. Taken together, Nvidia's ecosystem can be used to train large language models (LLMs) or help build more robust applications across AI robotics, autonomous driving, and quantum computing.
TPUs, by contrast, are much more specialized. Rather than being a purpose-built piece of hardware, Alphabet's TPUs should be classified as a custom application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). This makes TPUs useful in extremely bespoke workloads such as deep learning.
Alphabet's TPUs are seeing strong demand, but there's a catch
Throughout the AI revolution, one of Alphabet's biggest winners has been its cloud division: Google Cloud platform. In recent months, Google Cloud has won notable deals with OpenAI as well as a $10 billion contract with Meta Platforms.
What investors might not fully comprehend is that the introduction of hardware now makes TPUs an interesting selling point within Google's broader cloud ecosystem.
Notably, Apple used TPUs to train its Apple Intelligence models. Meanwhile, Anthropic announced plans to expand its usage of Google Cloud in a deal featuring up to 1 million TPUs. Lastly, rumors are swirling that Meta is considering complementing its existing reliance on Google Cloud by deploying its own TPU clusters.
On the surface, accelerating TPU demand from big tech might sound alarming for Nvidia investors. However, there are some finer details that smart investors shouldn't overlook.
While Anthropic's relationship with Google Cloud is significant, the company also has strong ties with Nvidia. Just weeks ago, Anthropic agreed to purchase $30 billion of compute capacity from Microsoft Azure, which runs heavily on Nvidia's GPUs.
On top of that, OpenAI recently struck a $38 billion deal with AWS to access Nvidia's new GB200 and GB300 chips.
Furthermore, while Nvidia does not reveal the specifics around its customer concentration, many analysts on Wall Street suspect that the hyperscalers -- including Alphabet -- are among its largest chip buyers.
These are important details to understand. While TPUs represent potentially transformative dynamics in the AI chip market, many of their users -- including Google itself -- actually complement this custom hardware with Nvidia's general purpose GPUs. Against this backdrop, TPUs don't appear to be replacing GPUs at all.
AI chips is not a winner-take-all market
Management consulting firm McKinsey & Company is forecasting AI infrastructure to be a $7 trillion market by 2030, with roughly $5 billion of this spend allocated toward AI workloads.
Given the hyperscalers are accelerating their capital expenditures (capex), I feel confident that demand for Nvidia's GPUs and accompanying data center services will remain robust for the foreseeable future.
It's possible -- even likely -- that rival accelerators from AMD in combination with custom ASICs such as TPUs will eventually erode Nvidia's pricing power in the chip market down the road.
Nevertheless, the introduction of TPUs is not a checkmate move by Google. If anything, complementing existing Nvidia infrastructure with custom chip designs reinforces how large of an opportunity AI infrastructure is becoming. In other words, AI chips are not a winner-take-all market.
For these reasons, I don't think Nvidia investors need to panic. The company still remains the king of the chip realm and appears well positioned to thrive in the AI infrastructure era.
Should you invest $1,000 in Alphabet right now?
Before you buy stock in Alphabet, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Alphabet wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $499,978!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,126,609!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 971% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 195% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.
*Stock Advisor returns as of December 8, 2025
Adam Spatacco has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Oracle. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Did Alphabet Just Say "Checkmate" to Nvidia?

Market Volatility and Opportunities

MP Materials MP shares have soared 98.9% in the past six months, far outpacing the industry’s 11.8% growth, the Zacks Basic Materials sector’s 11.8% rise and the S&P 500’s gain of 15.9%.
The stock’s rally has been driven by major developments during this period. This includes the agreement with the United States Department of War (DoW), formerly known as the Department of Defense, to accelerate a domestic rare earth magnet supply chain, a long-term deal to supply Apple AAPL with recycled rare earth magnets, as well as back-to-back solid production numbers in the second and third quarters of 2025.
MP Stock's YTD Performance Against Industry, Sector & S&P 500
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
While MP Materials has outshone another player in the rare earths space, Lynas Rare Earths Limited LYSDY, which gained 49.5% in the past six months, it has lagged Energy Fuels UUUU, which has gained 175.6% in the same time frame.
MP’s Performance vs. Energy Fuels & Lynas
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
While this rally may tempt investors, it is important to assess the underlying drivers and their sustainability, as well as the company’s growth prospects and potential risks, before making any investment decision.
Strategic Partnerships Fuel MP’s Growth Prospects
In July, MP Materials announced a landmark long-term agreement to supply Apple with rare earth magnets manufactured in the United States, entirely from recycled materials. Apple and MP Materials have collaborated over the past five years to develop advanced recycling technology that enables recycled rare earth magnets to be processed into material that meets Apple’s rigorous standards. Also, in July, MP Materials entered into a partnership with the DoW that will fast-track the development of a domestic rare earth magnet supply chain.
In November, MP Materials also announced it has partnered with the DoW to establish a strategic joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) to develop a rare earth refinery in the Kingdom. This will leverage Saudi Arabia’s competitive energy base, solid infrastructure and the untapped rare earth resources.
MP Reports Solid Production Numbers
MP Materials is demonstrating strong growth in rare earth production, with back-to-back solid quarterly performances so far this year. Production of neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) reached 721 metric tons in the third quarter, a 51% surge from the year-ago quarter. This outscored MP Materials’ previous record NdPr production of 597 metric tons in the second quarter.
The company’s NdPr production amounts to 1,881 MT for the first nine months of 2025, 114% higher than the prior year. MP has already surpassed its 2024 NdPr production of 1,294 MT. The company has been ramping up its NdPr production since it started production in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Rare Earth Oxide (REO) production was down 4% year over year to 13,254 metric tons (MT) in the third quarter. Despite this, it was the second-highest quarter on record in the company’s history. MP Materials had reported REO production of 13,145 metric tons in the second quarter of 2025.
MP’s Earnings Estimates See Downward Revision Activity
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MP Materials’ revenues is projected to grow 13.66% year over year in 2025, and further 79% in 2026.
The consensus estimate for 2025 earnings is currently pegged at a loss of 21 cents per share. The estimate for 2026 stands at earnings of 69 cents per share, implying a potential turnaround.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MP’s fiscal 2025 and 2026 earnings has moved south over the past 90 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
MP Materials Stock Trades at a Premium
MP is trading at a forward 12-month price/sales multiple of 25.41X, a significant premium to the industry’s 1.44X. It has a Value Score of F.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Energy Fuels is trading higher at 40.39X while Lynas is comparatively a cheaper option, trading at 11.11X.
MP Materials Poised Well in the Long Run
MP Materials operates the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine and Processing Facility, the only rare earth mining and processing site of scale in North America. These materials are essential for a wide range of existing and emerging clean-tech technologies, including electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, drones and defense systems. With China dominating the global supply, the United States is increasingly prioritizing the development of domestic rare earth capabilities.
The multibillion-dollar investment package and long-term commitments from DoW provide MP Materials the opportunity to capitalize on this. MP will construct the second domestic magnet manufacturing facility (the 10X Facility), which will take total U.S. rare earth magnet manufacturing capacity to 10,000 metric tons and cater to both the defense and commercial sectors. Also, the $500 million agreement with Apple marks a transformative step for MP, launching its recycling platform and scaling up its magnet production business.
Our Final Take on MP Stock
MP Materials’ unmatched positioning in the U.S. supply chain, efforts to ramp up operations and premium partnerships with Apple and the DoW indicate a robust growth runway. Investors holding MP shares should continue to do so to benefit from the solid long-term fundamentals.
However, new investors can wait for a better entry point, considering the premium valuation and the downward estimate revision activity in earnings. MP stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Is MP Stock a Buy, Hold or Sell After Its 98.9% Six-Month Rally?

Key Points
Investing in ETFs can help mitigate risk while still amplifying your earnings.
Growth ETFs sometimes carry more risk, but they also have potential for greater rewards.
The right investment can supercharge your portfolio in 2026 and beyond.
Investing in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can be a smart way to diversify your portfolio, gain exposure to a particular sector of the market, or own a small slice of the market as a whole.
Growth ETFs, specifically, are designed to earn above-average returns over time, as they focus on stocks with higher growth potential. Because you're investing in many stocks at once through an ETF, that can help limit risk while still capitalizing on growth companies.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »
While there are plenty of growth ETFs to choose from, these three could be smart investments heading into 2026 and beyond.
1. Vanguard Russell 2000 ETF
The Vanguard Russell 2000 ETF (NASDAQ: VTWO) contains a whopping 1,992 holdings, most of which are small-cap stocks. Small-cap stocks are generally defined as those with a market capitalization of around $300 million to $2 billion, and one of their biggest advantages is their potential for explosive growth.
Every large- or mega-cap stock had to start somewhere, and small-cap stocks provide investors the opportunity to invest in future industry leaders before they take off. While not all small-cap stocks turn into superstar performers, it only takes one to amplify your portfolio.
The Vanguard Russell 2000 ETF offers a well-diversified approach to small-cap stocks, covering all sectors of the market. While close to 20% of the fund is allocated to stocks in the industrials sector, it's not overly tilted toward any single industry -- and that diversification can help mitigate risk.
Over the last 10 years, it's earned an average rate of return of 9.18% per year. At that rate, if you were to invest $200 per month, you'd accumulate around $209,000 after 25 years.
2. iShares Future AI and Tech ETF
The iShares Future AI and Tech ETF (NYSEMKT: ARTY) focuses on domestic and international companies that are contributing to the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technology -- including AI software, services, infrastructure, and more.
The future of AI is still uncertain for now, but if you've been looking to gain exposure to this industry without having to sift through individual stocks, an AI-focused ETF could be a simpler way to buy into the sector. This fund contains only 48 holdings, making it less diversified than some other funds; however, it's highly targeted toward the AI subsector.
This ETF is on the riskier side, partly because of its smaller portfolio and partly because the AI sector, in general, can be incredibly volatile. It's also a newer fund, launched in 2018, so it doesn't have the extensive track record of some other ETFs.
That said, if the AI industry continues to boom, this investment could prove lucrative. Its average return over the last five years is a lackluster 8.07% per year, but over the last 12 months, it's earned an impressive 33.77% return.
While there are no guarantees that this investment will continue to perform well (and even if it does, the short term will likely be filled with ups and downs), it has the potential for substantial growth as the industry finds its footing.
3. Vanguard Information Technology ETF
For a broader tech-focused ETF, the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (NYSEMKT: VGT) could be a smart option. This ETF contains 314 stocks from all corners of the technology sector, and its top holdings include industry leaders like Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft.
This ETF can serve as a middle ground for investors looking for tech exposure without zeroing in on any specific subsector. With much of the portfolio allocated to robust large-cap stocks, this can also help limit some of the risk of investing in the tech industry.
Over the last 10 years, this ETF has earned a much higher-than-average return of 22.18% per year. If you were to invest $200 per month at that rate, you'd accumulate around $1.6 million after 25 years. Just keep in mind that the tech sector can be incredibly volatile in the short term, so it's wise to keep your expectations in check with this type of investment.
Growth ETFs can be a fantastic way to generate higher returns in the stock market. Whether you're looking for small-cap growth, AI exposure, or diversification within the tech sector, the right fund can supercharge your earnings over time.
Should you invest $1,000 in Vanguard Information Technology ETF right now?
Before you buy stock in Vanguard Information Technology ETF, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Vanguard Information Technology ETF wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $521,550!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,133,904!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 981% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 194% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.
*Stock Advisor returns as of December 8, 2025
Katie Brockman has positions in Vanguard Information Technology ETF. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

3 Unstoppable Growth ETFs to Stock Up On in 2026 and Beyond

Key Points
Alphabet's advertising business provides it with plenty of money to invest in Google Cloud.
Amazon has a 40% market share in e-commerce in the U.S.
Buffett has trimmed Berkshire Hathaway's stake in Apple, but it still makes up 21% of the conglomerate's portfolio.
I appreciate that Warren Buffett keeps us guessing. The longtime CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) is retiring at the end of this month, but he leaves a powerful legacy as one of the greatest investors to have ever lived.
Buffett has famously focused on companies that aren't flashy, such as those in the credit card, financial services, insurance, and consumer staples sectors, which are easily understood, undervalued, and have a strong competitive moat. Buffett made a significant amount of money with his investing philosophy, leading Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio to outperform the S&P 500 by far for the duration of his career.
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But Buffett's also willing to change, and he's never one to leave the stocks of great companies on the table. So, it's interesting that in the final month of his career at Berkshire, the conglomerate is now holding some outstanding tech stocks that are at the forefront of the proliferation of artificial intelligence.
Even though Buffett is stepping down and the famed Berkshire portfolio is being taken over by one of his trusted lieutenants, Greg Abel, here are three stocks that you should have in your portfolio today. Hint: they all start with the letter "A" and, in my mind, are the very definition of an A-rated stock.
Alphabet: The newest pick
Berkshire Hathaway didn't open a position in Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) until the third quarter. The purchase of nearly 18 million shares was disclosed in a regulatory filing in November, giving Berkshire a stake now worth more than $5.5 billion.
Alphabet has some traits that come directly from the Buffett playbook. It has a massive competitive moat, with a dominant 89% of internet search and a 71% web browser market share. That gives it fuel for its powerful advertising business, which generated $74.1 billion in the third quarter.
The massive cash influx enables Alphabet to invest in the infrastructure necessary for the growth of its Google Cloud computing division. Cloud computing is becoming more important because it's tremendously expensive to buy, cluster, and operate thousands of expensive semiconductor chips to run AI programs. Many companies are turning to cloud hyperscalers like Google as a solution, which is why Alphabet's Google Cloud revenue jumped 33% to $15.1 billion in the third quarter compared to the same period last year.
If Alphabet signs a rumored multi-billion-dollar deal with Meta Platforms to supply Meta data centers with its Google tensor processing units (an alternative to Nvidia's graphics processing units), then Alphabet may just be scratching the surface of its AI potential.
Amazon: E-commerce and cloud dominance
Berkshire Hathaway opened its position in Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) stock in early 2019. And Buffett has kept a position for nearly seven years now, it's notable that the conglomerate's stake of 10 million shares is significantly less than its stake in Alphabet, and is valued at $2.2 billion.
Given a choice between the two, I think that Alphabet is by far the superior stock, so it makes sense to me that Berkshire's investment is more than twice as much as its Amazon holdings.
Amazon fits the Buffett mold by having a dominant e-commerce business, holding a 40% market share in the U.S. market and $147.1 billion in revenue in the third quarter. The problem with the business is that it has a profit margin of only 4%. If there were a way for Amazon to achieve a margin of even a few percentage points higher, I think the stock would be significantly more appealing.
But like Alphabet, Amazon has a cloud computing division, and it's much more profitable. Amazon Web Services (AWS) generated $33 billion in the third quarter, up 20% from a year ago. The 34% profit margin is more than attractive.
Apple: The biggest position
Berkshire Hathaway has owned Apple stock for nearly a decade, and it's by far the company's largest holding. Berkshire Hathaway owns 238.2 million shares of Apple stock, with a stake valued at $66 billion. Apple stock makes up more than 21% of Berkshire's entire portfolio.
But it used to be a lot more. Apple used to make up about half of Berkshire's portfolio, but Buffett and his team sold more than 680 million shares since 2023, including nearly 42 million shares in the third quarter.
Does this mean Apple's a bad stock? Not at all. It simply means that Buffett and his team believed the company needed to diversify its holdings -- and that's always good advice. You don't want any company to dominate your portfolio because it leaves you vulnerable to weakness in the company or the sector.
Fortunately for Apple and its investors, the company had a strong 2025, with revenue in its fiscal fourth quarter (ended Sept. 27), up 8% from a year ago to $102.5 billion. Buffett appreciates Apple because its customers tend to be loyal, creating an ecosystem that includes smartphones, personal computers, wearable technology, and entertainment. Now, as Apple invests in Apple Intelligence, the AI tool that it incorporates into its computers, smartphones, and tablets, Apple has high hopes that AI will continue to make Apple a winning stock.
How to invest $10,000 into Buffett stocks
With your $10,000 investment split equally, you can get 10 shares of Alphabet Class A stock (the same class that Berkshire holds), 14 shares of Amazon stock, and 12 shares of Apple stock. That's a strong Buffett-approved way to invest in the tech sector -- and position your portfolio to profit from the growing AI transformation.
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Patrick Sanders has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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