Got $5,000? 3 Incredible Stocks to Buy for 2026

By Keithen Drury – Dec 27, 2025 at 6:15AM ESTKey PointsNvidia expects more strong growth in 2026.The Trade Desk was the S&P 500's worst-performing stock.MercadoLibre is dominating Latin American e-commerce.These 10 Stocks Could Mint the Next Wave of Millionaires ›NASDAQ: NVDANvidiaMarket Cap$4.6TToday's Changeangle-down(1.09%) $2.05Current Price$190.66Price as of December 26, 2025 at 3:58 PM ET2026 is shaping up to be another incredible year for some stocks.2026 is right around the corner, and there are some incredible stocks available to buy. I've got three that I believe will crush the market in 2026, and I think investors should have some healthy exposure to them. Nvidia (NVDA +1.09%), The Trade Desk (TTD +0.56%), and MercadoLibre (MELI +0.50%) make great buys. These three all operate in different areas, and are poised to continue 2025's success or make a huge comeback. Image source: Getty Images. 1. Nvidia Nvidia is the world's largest company by market cap. However, that isn't stopping it from growing at an unreal pace. Nvidia makes graphics processing units (GPUs) and the technology to support them, which are the preferred computing units to train and run artificial intelligence (AI) models. Nvidia expects monster growth in 2026, as the AI hyperscalers have all informed their investors that they will be spending a record amount constructing data centers in 2026. ExpandNASDAQ: NVDANvidiaToday's Change(1.09%) $2.05Current Price$190.66Key Data PointsMarket Cap$4.6TDay's Range$189.63 - $192.6952wk Range$86.62 - $212.19Volume5.5MAvg Vol189MGross Margin70.05%Dividend Yield0.02% This bodes well for Nvidia, but it has one problem: It's sold out of cloud GPUs. With demand so high for its GPUs, it can start taking orders for computer graphics years in advance. This is what gives management confidence to provide a mind-blowing projection: It expects global data center capital expenditures to total $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030. That's up from 2025's $600 billion, and if Nvidia's projection pans out, it will be one of the best stocks to own in 2026 and beyond. Furthermore, Nvidia's stock really isn't all that expensive. It trades for 24 times 2026's earnings, which isn't bad considering the multi-year growth it's expected to deliver. Advertisement 2.

The Trade Desk The Trade Desk has had a bad year. It is currently the worst-performing company in the S&P 500 (^GSPC 0.03%) for 2025, down around 70% this year. That's a horrendous 2025 for one of the leading advertising software providers, but it's not because the company is necessarily doing poorly. ExpandNASDAQ: TTDThe Trade DeskToday's Change(0.56%) $0.21Current Price$38.34Key Data PointsMarket Cap$19BDay's Range$37.80 - $38.4152wk Range$35.65 - $127.59Volume244KAvg Vol13MGross Margin78.81% In Q3, The Trade Desk's revenue rose 18% year over year. The only issue is that The Trade Desk's revenue growth rate is slowing, thanks to rising competition and a poorly executed rollout of its new AI-powered platform, Kokai. However, part of The Trade Desk's decline was an elimination of the premium the stock used to trade at. Now, it's actually undervalued. TTD PE Ratio (Forward 1y) data by YCharts The Trade Desk now trades at less than 18 times 2026's earnings, making it a solid value in today's expensive market. I think The Trade Desk will mount a solid comeback in 2026 and provide market-beating returns along the way. 3. MercadoLibre MercadoLibre hasn't had as bad a year as The Trade Desk, as it's still up around 17% for the year. However, that's about market-matching growth, which is disappointing considering MercadoLibre's long-term outperformance. ExpandNASDAQ: MELIMercadoLibreToday's Change(0.50%) $10.06Current Price$2008.27Key Data PointsMarket Cap$102BDay's Range$1994.41 - $2011.2252wk Range$1693.01 - $2645.22Volume10KAvg Vol558KGross Margin45.14% MercadoLibre is the dominant e-commerce and fintech company in Latin America. It's essentially a combination of Amazon (AMZN +0.06%) and PayPal (PYPL 0.12%), and shareholders have reaped the rewards of owning MercadoLibre as it has rapidly expanded to dominate the e-commerce market in Latin America. It still has a long way to go, and its stock is valued at the lowest level it has seen in a long time. MELI Price to Free Cash Flow data by YCharts At just 15 times free cash flow, MercadoLibre looks like a steal at these levels. Combine its low price tag with an incredible opportunity to dominate Latin American commerce, MercadoLibre looks like a no-brainer buy. It's down more than 20% from its all-time high established in July. I think MercadoLibre will return to its market-beating status in 2026, making it one of the top stocks to buy for the year.Read NextDec 27, 2025 •By Adria Cimino3 AI Stocks I'd Happily Hold Through Any Stock Market CrashDec 26, 2025 •By Neil PatelIf You'd Invested $100 in Nvidia 10 Years Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have TodayDec 26, 2025 •By Keithen DruryPrediction: This Will Be 2026's Top-Performing Artificial Intelligence StockDec 26, 2025 •By Adam SpataccoWhat Is the Smartest Quantum Computing Stock to Buy in 2026?Dec 25, 2025 •By Harsh ChauhanCould January Spark the Next Big Rally in AI Stocks?Dec 24, 2025 •By Leo Sun3 Artificial Intelligence Stocks You Can Buy and Hold for the Next DecadeAbout the AuthorKeithen Drury is a contributing Motley Fool technology analyst covering AI, semiconductors, cybersecurity, and SaaS stocks. In addition to The Motley Fool, Keithen is a mechanical engineer and has held roles at Honeywell and smaller industrial companies like Brand Hydraulics and Lincoln Industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Dordt University.TMFTripleOptionStocks MentionedNvidiaNASDAQ: NVDA$190.66 (+0.01%) $+2.05S&P 500 IndexSNPINDEX: ^GSPC$6929.94 (0.00%) $2.11MercadoLibreNASDAQ: MELI$2005.71 (+0.00%) $+7.50The Trade DeskNASDAQ: TTD$38.34 (+0.01%) $+0.21*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.Advertisement