Portfolios by year2019

The 20 best stocks of 2019 according to reliable analysts

3 JPI methods (Light / Fair / Risk +) · selected early January 2019, held 12 months · real return · S&P 500 · Updated 2026-07-08
In short — in early 2019, the 3 JPI methods (based on the most reliable analysts, ≥2 who beat their sector) would each have selected 20 S&P 500 stocks, held 12 months. Real results: 🟢 Light +25% · 🎯 Fair +34% · ⚡ Risk+ +33% — vs +29% for the S&P 500. Best selection (Fair): LITE (Lumentum) at +89%.

These stocks were not cherry-picked in hindsight: they are the ones the method would have selected using only info known by end of 2018 (price targets from reliable analysts in the prior ~90 days), then held unchanged for 12 months. A true point-in-time record.

🟢 JPI Light +25% · vs S&P 500 +29% · -3.6 pts

#Stock12-month return
1LITE Lumentum+89%
2ODFL Old Dominion+54%
3SYF Synchrony Financial+54%
4EW Edwards Lifesciences+52%
5T AT&T+37%
6CFG Citizens Financial Group+37%
7COF Capital One+36%
8AWK American Water Works+35%
9LH Labcorp+34%
10BDX Becton Dickinson+21%
11DAL Delta Air Lines+17%
12CSX CSX Corporation+17%
13CVS CVS Health+13%
14FTV Fortive+13%
15NI NiSource+10%
16CNC Centene Corporation+9%
17NTAP NetApp+4%
18HPQ HP Inc.+0%
19FDX FedEx-6%
20TPR Tapestry, Inc.-20%

🎯 JPI Fair +34% · vs S&P 500 +29% · +4.9 pts

#Stock12-month return
1LITE Lumentum+89%
2WDC Western Digital+72%
3AMP Ameriprise Financial+60%
4ODFL Old Dominion+54%
5EW Edwards Lifesciences+52%
6SHW Sherwin-Williams+48%
7MCHP Microchip Technology+46%
8SRE Sempra+40%
9T AT&T+37%
10LH Labcorp+34%
11WMT Walmart+28%
12VLO Valero Energy+25%
13ISRG Intuitive Surgical+23%
14RJF Raymond James Financial+20%
15BKR Baker Hughes+19%
16CSX CSX Corporation+17%
17STLD Steel Dynamics+13%
18FTV Fortive+13%
19FDX FedEx-6%
20HAL Halliburton-8%

⚡ JPI Risk + +33% · vs S&P 500 +29% · +4.5 pts

#Stock12-month return
1LITE Lumentum+89%
2WDC Western Digital+72%
3ODFL Old Dominion+54%
4EW Edwards Lifesciences+52%
5SHW Sherwin-Williams+48%
6MCHP Microchip Technology+46%
7LEN Lennar+43%
8SRE Sempra+40%
9NEE NextEra Energy+39%
10ETR Entergy+39%
11NDAQ Nasdaq, Inc.+31%
12WMT Walmart+28%
13ISRG Intuitive Surgical+23%
14RJF Raymond James Financial+20%
15BKR Baker Hughes+19%
16CSX CSX Corporation+17%
17SLB Schlumberger+11%
18CNC Centene Corporation+9%
19FDX FedEx-6%
20HAL Halliburton-8%

What if you'd kept following the method in 2020?

In short — not every year is positive: this is not a miracle method. 2019 shows it — the JPI Fair method returned +34%, better than the S&P 500 (+29%). But the method replays every year: in 2020, the 20 newly recommended stocks returned +37%. Outcome if you kept going (accept 2019, then buy the 2020 picks): +84% over 2 years — vs +50% for the S&P 500.
YearJPI FairS&P 500
2019+34%+29%
2020+37%+16%
2-year cumulative (if you kept going)+84%+50%

💡 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.

💡 Read it honestly: one good year proves nothing — the method also has down years (2018, 2022). The real judge is the 11-year backtest. Price returns, excluding dividends and fees. Not a buy recommendation.

📊 See the full 11-year backtest → 🎯 Stocks to buy today →

📅← 2018 · All years · 2020 →

FAQ

What were the best stocks to buy in 2019?

Per the JPI Fair method (targets from the ≥2 most reliable analysts per sector), the 20 S&P 500 stocks selected in early 2019 returned +33.7% on average over 12 months, vs 28.8% for the index. The best was LITE (Lumentum) at +89%. See the full list above.

How were these 2019 stocks chosen?

With no hindsight: only from information known by end of 2018 (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.

Explore JPI Invest for free → How it works: the method →

⚠️ 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. · Updated 2026-07-08
JPI AI Analyst AI assistant · JPI Invest
Answers based on the tool’s data · not financial advice · full version (free)