FrançaisThe 20 best stocks of 2017 according to reliable analysts
These stocks were not cherry-picked in hindsight: they are the ones the method would have selected using only info known by end of 2016 (price targets from reliable analysts in the prior ~90 days), then held unchanged for 12 months. A true point-in-time record.
🎯 JPI Fair +26% · vs S&P 500 +19% · +6.7 pts
| # | Stock | 12-month return |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MU Micron Technology | +88% |
| 2 | CNC Centene Corporation | +78% |
| 3 | GPN Global Payments | +44% |
| 4 | MSFT Microsoft | +38% |
| 5 | ZTS Zoetis | +35% |
| 6 | NOC Northrop Grumman | +32% |
| 7 | ACN Accenture | +31% |
| 8 | SCHW Charles Schwab Corporation | +30% |
| 9 | LMT Lockheed Martin | +28% |
| 10 | INTC Intel | +27% |
| 11 | ADI Analog Devices | +23% |
| 12 | PM Philip Morris International | +16% |
| 13 | DAL Delta Air Lines | +14% |
| 14 | MDT Medtronic | +13% |
| 15 | TDG TransDigm Group | +10% |
| 16 | HBAN Huntington Bancshares | +10% |
| 17 | NUE Nucor | +7% |
| 18 | HPE Hewlett Packard Enterprise | +7% |
| 19 | GILD Gilead Sciences | +0% |
| 20 | CVS CVS Health | -8% |
⚡ JPI Risk + +32% · vs S&P 500 +19% · +12.7 pts
| # | Stock | 12-month return |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | VRTX Vertex Pharmaceuticals | +103% |
| 2 | MU Micron Technology | +88% |
| 3 | CNC Centene Corporation | +78% |
| 4 | NTAP NetApp | +57% |
| 5 | CRM Salesforce | +49% |
| 6 | GPN Global Payments | +44% |
| 7 | MNST Monster Beverage | +43% |
| 8 | ADSK Autodesk | +42% |
| 9 | DLTR Dollar Tree | +39% |
| 10 | MSFT Microsoft | +38% |
| 11 | DD DuPont | +24% |
| 12 | EW Edwards Lifesciences | +20% |
| 13 | BSX Boston Scientific | +15% |
| 14 | TDG TransDigm Group | +10% |
| 15 | NEM Newmont | +10% |
| 16 | HRL Hormel Foods | +4% |
| 17 | GILD Gilead Sciences | +0% |
| 18 | UAL United Airlines Holdings | -8% |
| 19 | JCI Johnson Controls | -8% |
| 20 | CVS CVS Health | -8% |
What if you'd kept following the method in 2018?
| Year | JPI Fair | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | +26% | +19% |
| 2018 | -10% | -6% |
| 2-year cumulative (if you kept going) | +14% | +12% |
💡 The takeaway — you have to accept the average or down years and stay in the method (sell, rebuy the newly recommended names). Whoever panics after a bad year misses the rebound. Discipline > emotion.
📊 See the full 11-year backtest → 🎯 Stocks to buy today →
FAQ
What were the best stocks to buy in 2017?
Per the JPI Fair method (targets from the ≥2 most reliable analysts per sector), the 20 S&P 500 stocks selected in early 2017 returned +26.1% on average over 12 months, vs 19.4% for the index. The best was MU (Micron Technology) at +88%. See the full list above.
How were these 2017 stocks chosen?
With no hindsight: only from information known by end of 2016 (price targets from analysts with a real reliability track record on their sector), then held 12 months. A point-in-time backtest, not a hindsight pick.
Does this method actually work?
Over 11 years (2015-2025), the JPI Fair method returned +26%/yr vs +12.6% for the S&P 500 — double the market. But it's lumpy (drawdowns in 2018 and 2022) and risk-adjusted the edge is thinner. A quality signal, not a guarantee.
What is JPI Invest?
JPI Invest aggregates analyst recommendations across the entire S&P 500 (plus the S&P MidCap 400), replays them against real prices and measures who predicts best — on results, not reputation. Instead of taking a price target at face value, you see each analyst's track record on each stock.
- 🏆 Analyst leaderboard by real reliability (beating their sector, not just riding the rally)
- 🎯 What to buy: 3 backtested methods over 6 years, from cautious to aggressive
- 💬 AI assistant: ask anything about any stock, with the numbers
- 📊 Portfolio tracking + 🔔 price alerts by email
⚠️ Educational analysis, not investment advice. Point-in-time backtest on recomputed Yahoo data, universe = stocks still in the index (survivorship bias). Past performance does not predict the future.