5 Best Stocks to Buy Today
| Company (Ticker) | 12 Week Price Change | Forward PE | Price | Proj EPS Growth (1 Year) | Projected Sales Growth (1Y) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plains Group (PAGP) | 1.36% | 13.02 | $18.72 | 175.63% | -8.54% |
| Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) | 11.56% | 22.13 | $171.47 | 83.79% | 34.56% |
| Navigator Holdings (NVGS) | 7.21% | 13.15 | $17.75 | 0.51% | 3.44% |
| Alcoa (AA) | 29.99% | 12.00 | $41.93 | 157.04% | 7.01% |
| Pan American Silver (PAAS) | 28.90% | 21.34 | $45.90 | 173.28% | 23.08% |
*Updated on December 2, 2025.
Plains Group (PAGP)
$18.72 USD +0.06 (0.32%)
3-Year Stock Price Performance
Premium Research for PAGP
- Zacks Rank
Strong Buy 1
- Style Scores
A Value B Growth F Momentum A VGM
- Market Cap: $3.67 B (Mid Cap)
- Projected EPS Growth: 175.00%
- Last Quarter EPS Growth:520.00%
- Last EPS Surprise:-26.19%
- Next EPS Report date: Feb. 6, 2026
Our Take:
Plains GP is the public holding company for Plains All American Pipeline (PAA), which operates crude-oil and NGL gathering, long-haul pipelines, storage and terminals across North America. Its economics are tied to PAA’s largely fee-based midstream network, giving PAGP leveraged exposure to Permian Basin volumes. Plains completed the EPIC Crude pipeline acquisition last month, deepening “wellhead-to-water” connectivity to Corpus Christi, an asset aligned with sustained Permian growth.
A Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) underscores upward estimate revisions, while Style Scores of A for Value and Growth suggest attractive valuation with improving earnings, and F for Momentum simply reflects recent consolidation.
On the Price, Consensus & EPS Surprise chart, price has trended higher since mid-2024 as 2025–2027 EPS lines drift upward and tighten, typical of a maturing, cash-generative midstream setup. Together, stable fee revenue, visible Permian throughput, and incremental EPIC synergies argue for continued return potential.
Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM)
$171.47 USD -0.54 (-0.31%)
3-Year Stock Price Performance
Premium Research for AEM
- Zacks Rank
Strong Buy 1
- Style Scores
D Value B Growth B Momentum B VGM
- Market Cap: $87.50 B (Large Cap)
- Projected EPS Growth: 83.69%
- Last Quarter EPS Growth: 11.34%
- Last EPS Surprise:22.73%
- Next EPS Report date:Feb. 12, 2026
Our Take:
Agnico Eagle is a senior gold producer with a concentrated portfolio in Tier-1 jurisdictions, anchored by Canadian Malartic, Detour Lake and the Nunavut mines. Operations emphasize long lives, low geopolitical risk and disciplined growth. Recent results highlighted record profits, strong free cash flow and unchanged 2025 guidance, backed by higher gold prices. Advancing underground work at Detour and continued investment across the Arctic platform reinforce multi-year visibility and operating leverage to gold.
A Zacks Rank #1 with Style Scores of B for Growth and Momentum reflects estimate revisions and constructive tape action, while the Value score of D is typical for high-quality gold names during price upswings.
On the chart, price has broken out to new highs while 2025–2027 consensus tracks higher in parallel, an encouraging confirmation that execution is matching rising expectations. For investors seeking scale, cost discipline and jurisdictional safety in gold, AEM stands out.
Navigator Holdings (NVGS)
$17.75 USD -0.10 (-0.56%)
3-Year Stock Price Performance
Premium Research for NVGS
- Zacks Rank
Strong Buy 1
- Style Scores
B Value D Growth C Momentum C VGM
- Market Cap: $1.24 B (Small Cap)
- Projected EPS Growth: 0.74%
- Last Quarter EPS Growth: 157.14%
- Last EPS Surprise:0.00%
- Next EPS Report date: March 11, 2026
Our Take:
Navigator operates the world’s largest handysize liquefied gas fleet, transporting ethylene, ethane, LPG, and ammonia, and holds a 50% stake in Morgan’s Point ethylene export terminal on the Houston Ship Channel. It continues to modernize and expand its ethylene-capable fleet and focuses on building an ammonia bunkering network through the Azane stake. Its fleet utilization reached 89.3% in the third quarter, up from 84.2% in the prior quarter.
A Zacks Rank #1 signals positive estimate momentum, while a Style Score of B for Value offsets softer Growth and Momentum Scores of D. Activity for its semi-refrigerated LPG carriers is on the rise, backed by Middle East demand.
On the chart, shares have been volatile, but the newest consensus line for 2027 inflects higher following terminal expansion news, suggesting improving medium-term earnings power. With infrastructure-adjacent exposure to ethylene and ammonia trades, NVGS offers a differentiated shipping cash-flow story.
Alcoa (AA)
$41.93 USD +0.28 (0.67%)
3-Year Stock Price Performance
Premium Research for AA
- Zacks Rank
Strong Buy 1
- Style Scores
B Value F Growth D Momentum D VGM
- Market Cap: $10.81 B (Large Cap)
- Projected EPS Growth:157.04%
- Last Quarter EPS Growth: -105.13%
- Last EPS Surprise: 86.67%
- Next EPS Report date: Jan. 28, 2026
Our Take:
Alcoa is a leading upstream aluminum company spanning bauxite mining, alumina refining and aluminum smelting, with energy assets supporting operations. Its integrated footprint positions it to benefit from tight alumina and aluminum markets and decarbonization demand. Its fourth-quarter shipments are expected to increase, despite refinery expansions in Indonesia and China pressuring markets.
A Zacks Rank #1 reflects rising estimates, while a Style Score of B for Value counters F for Growth and Momentum, typical after a sharp rally. With government support from Australia, Japan and the United States, its gallium plant development in Western Australia will unlock significant value in the long term.
The chart shows a powerful price rebound through 2025, with consensus for 2026–2027 turning higher, evidence that revisions are catching up to pricing and portfolio moves. For investors seeking leveraged exposure to aluminum fundamentals with improving strategic alignment, AA presents a timely, if cyclical, setup.
Pan American Silver (PAAS)
$45.90 USD -0.18 (-0.39%)
3-Year Stock Price Performance
Premium Research for PAAS
- Zacks Rank
Hold 3
- Style Scores
C Value B Growth A Momentum A VGM
- Market Cap:$19.27 B (Large Cap)
- Projected EPS Growth:172.15%
- Last Quarter EPS Growth: 11.63%
- Last EPS Surprise:-2.04%
- Next EPS Report date:Feb. 18, 2026
Our Take:
Pan American is one of the largest primary silver producers with meaningful gold by-product, operating a diversified Americas portfolio. It emphasizes reserve life and operating breadth across Mexico, Peru, Canada and South America. Management’s 2025 outlook points to second-half-weighted volume and cost improvements, including progress at La Colorada and other optimization projects. Balance-sheet discipline and a multi-mine platform provide flexibility across cycles.
A Zacks Rank #1 and Style Scores of C for Growth and D for Value reflect favorable revisions and reasonable growth despite a Momentum Score of F. The MAG Silver acquisition in September boosted its Mexico footprint and offers a significant contribution to its Silver Segment operations.
On the chart, price consolidated after a strong run while 2026–2027 consensus stabilizes and begins to lift, consistent with execution catching up to prior enthusiasm. With diversified assets, PAAS offers a balanced exposure to silver and other deposits.
Best Stocks to Buy Now: How to Use This List
It’s important to understand what this list is, and what it isn’t.
For decades, the Zacks Rank has been a proven system that has helped investors identify stocks most likely to outperform. Instead of relying on hunches or hype, it’s grounded in earnings estimate revisions — a factor strongly correlated with stock price movement. When combined with additional fundamental metrics, the approach becomes even more powerful.
Still, it’s important to understand these basics:
- While the list offers exposure across several industries, it is not a fully diversified portfolio. You should think of it as a starting point, not a complete investing strategy.
- Even though these stocks are backed by a proven system, nothing protects you from short-term downside. Depending on market conditions, most — or even all — could decline in the near term.
- The Zacks Rank works because it captures trends in earnings momentum. That power plays out over weeks and months, not days. Investors with patience and discipline are more likely to benefit.
- Before buying any single stock, check how it aligns with your goals, risk tolerance, and broader portfolio.
Methodology
The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that uses trends in earnings estimate revisions and earnings-per-share (EPS) surprises to classify stocks into five groups: #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy), #3 (Hold), #4 (Sell) and #5 (Strong Sell). The Zacks Rank is calculated through four primary factors related to earnings estimates: analysts' consensus on earnings estimate revisions, the magnitude of revision change, the upside potential and estimate surprise (or the degree in which earnings per share deviated from the previous quarter).
Zacks builds the data from 3,000 analysts at over 150 different brokerage firms. The average yearly gain for Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks is +23.62% per year from January, 1988, through June 2, 2025.
For this list, only companies in the top 50% of industries that have average daily trading volumes of 100,000 shares or more were considered. Stocks with a share value of $5 or less were excluded. These companies earned Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) between Nov. 17 and Nov. 29, 2025. All information is current as of market open, Dec.1, 2025.
Common Questions of New Investors
Where to Buy Stocks
To invest in stocks, you must open a brokerage account, fund the account and purchase stocks through your selected brokerage. Investors may also purchase stocks through a financial advisor or an automated robo advisor. Some publicly traded companies also offer a direct stock purchase plan, where you can purchase shares directly from the company.
Alternative Ways to Invest in Stocks
You can also invest in stock funds, such as mutual funds, index funds and exchange-traded funds, where the fund managers select the pool of stocks that follow an investing strategy. These funds may broadly cover an entire index, such as the S&P 500, or specific types of stocks, such as industries like technology and energy companies, company size such as small cap companies, or location like international companies.
How to Start Investing in Stocks Today
It’s easy to start investing by opening an online brokerage account. Opening a standard brokerage account takes about 20 minutes and you’ll need to have some personal information ready, such as your social security number and your bank details to fund your account.
You’ll need to decide whether to open a taxable account (most common), a tax-deferred retirement account such as a traditional IRA or a tax-free retirement account such as a Roth IRA, which is funded with after-tax dollars, but qualified withdrawals are tax-free. A margin account allows for borrowing to purchase stocks and is best for experienced traders.
Set goals before you begin investing – determine how much you can afford to invest and your tolerance for risk.
What to Look for When You Buy Stocks?
The goal in all equities investment is to buy low and sell high, growing your wealth over time. Researching the companies to invest in is key – what kind of product or service do they offer? How do they compare with competitors? How fast are they growing? Does the stock pay regular dividends to shareholders? Does the stock help diversify your portfolio by giving you exposure to a market segment you currently don’t hold?
Understanding fundamental analysis can help determine whether the stock has the potential for growth at its current purchase price. Factors that can help determine that include earnings per share (EPS), price-to-earnings ratio and PE growth. Technical analysis is used looking at statistical patterns to potentially predict future price moves. Some investors may look for a growth and income strategy, looking for stocks with solid revenues that pay good dividends, or a value strategy, looking if a current stock price is below what their revenue, EPS and other factors suggest.
Analysts also often look for the momentum of a stock by looking at moving averages of a stock's closing price over a 50-day, 100-day or 12-month trailing time period to determine signals whether to buy or sell a stock.
