On March 21, Jason Pride, Chief of Investment Strategy at Glenmede, and Stephen DeNichilo, Portfolio Manager at Federated Hermes, appeared on CNBC’s ‘Power Lunch’ to discuss the current market dynamics. Pride cautioned against overemphasizing the MAG7 tech stocks and noted that this market is one of the most concentrated in history, which is similar to the levels seen in 1999–2000 and the Roaring Twenties. He argued that this extreme concentration suggests that future market performance is more likely to come from areas outside these dominant stocks. Pride emphasized the importance of diversification in this environment. He advised investors to focus on the remaining stocks in the S&P 500 index beyond the MAG7. He highlighted small-cap stocks, international equities, and bonds as better opportunities for future returns. According to him, moving away from over-concentrated segments of the market is essential for achieving better long-term performance.
DeNichilo added his perspective by explaining what drives stock prices over time. He noted that for a stock to rise in value, someone must be willing to buy it at a higher price. With the MAG7 being some of the most widely owned stocks in history, he questioned who else is left to buy them. He pointed out that markets dislike uncertainty, and today’s environment is filled with it, ranging from tariffs and inflation to interest rate policies and unpredictable forecasts from big companies. This lack of clarity has created a self-imposed economic slowdown. DeNichilo shifted focus to small-cap stocks, which he described as significantly undervalued based on historical metrics. He suggested that if interest rates decline and market confidence improves over the next 6 to 12 months, small-cap stocks are likely to perform well. He argued that smaller companies often drive innovation due to their agility and ability to grow earnings faster than massive corporations like those in the MAG7.
Both Pride and DeNichilo agreed that diversification and looking beyond dominant tech giants are critical strategies for navigating today’s uncertain market environment. With that being acknowledged, we’re here with a list of the 11 best performing stocks so far in 2025.
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Our Methodology
We used the Finviz stock screener to compile a list of all the best-performing stocks. We then picked the 11 stocks with the highest year-to-date gains, as of March 21. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of their year-to-date performance. We have also added the hedge fund sentiment for each stock which was sourced from Insider Monkey’s database.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
11 Best Performing Stocks So Far In 2025
11. China Yuchai International Ltd. (NYSE:CYD)
Year-to-Date Performance as of March 21: 100.73%%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 6
China Yuchai International Ltd. (NYSE:CYD) specializes in the production and sale of diesel and natural gas engines for a range of applications. It primarily focuses on its Yuchai segment which manufactures powertrain solutions for on and off-road vehicles, while also engaging in hospitality and property development through its HLGE segment.
The company’s primary revenue driver is its truck and bus engine sales. In 2024, despite the overall Chinese truck and bus vehicle market declining by 2.6%, China Yuchai International Ltd.’s (NYSE:CYD) engine sales in this sector increased by 17.2%. In H2 2024 alone, its truck and bus engine sales rose by 1.6%, while the market saw a 9.9% decline. This helped the full-year 2024 overall revenue at the company to reach RMB 19.1 billion, which was a 6.6% increase year-over-year. The company sold 356,586 engines in 2024, which was up by 13.7%.
The company is developing next-generation emission standard engines and exploring alternative fuels like hydrogen. Its joint venture, MTU Yuchai Power, is expanding the company’s product line. MTU Yuchai Power is a 50-50 joint venture between China Yuchai International Ltd. (NYSE:CYD) and Rolls-Royce Power Systems and is focused on producing and selling high-power generator engines.
10. Accolade Inc. (NASDAQ:ACCD)
Year-to-Date Performance as of March 21: 104.97%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25
Accolade Inc. (NASDAQ:ACCD) provides technology-enabled healthcare navigation and advocacy solutions for employers and employees across the US. Its platform integrates cloud-based technology with personalized support from clinicians and advocates to simplify healthcare and benefits utilization.
The company’s healthcare navigation and advocacy platform uses technology and human support to help clients manage healthcare costs and improve patient outcomes. It has shown strong results with clients like DeVry University, where it achieved a 2% medical cost trend compared to the industry’s 6-10%. Accolade Inc. (NASDAQ:ACCD) now has over $234 million in cash and equivalents as of FQ2 2025.
The company uses AI-driven technology to enhance its human care teams, making its services scalable. It’s focused on disrupting the US healthcare market by creating a collaborative ecosystem that improves patient experiences and lowers costs. Accolade Inc. (NASDAQ:ACCD) is also diversifying its client base across different sectors, including strategic, enterprise, health plan, and government. The company reaffirmed its full-year 2025 revenue guidance of $460 to $475 million.
