Q2 Top stocks: Retail investors cast the net wider for AI winners whilst Nvidia becomes eToro’s second-most popular stock

• Nvidia rises from from 4th to 2nd on list of most held stocks amongst eToro users globally
• Hunt for AI winners sees Dell, Broadcom, Micron Technology and MongoDB feature in Q2’s ‘top risers’ list
• eToro users seek European opportunities with Santander and Repsol also amongst top risers
• Romanian investors favored Nike, Nvidia, AMD, Intel and UiPath

 Retail investors continue to back Nvidia whilst simultaneously casting a wider net in the hunt for AI winners, according to the latest quarterly stocks data from trading and investing platform eToro.

eToro looked at which companies saw the biggest proportionate change in holders, quarter-on-quarter (table 3), while also looking at the 10 most held stocks on the platform by global investors (table 1) and the Romanian ones (table 2).

Amongst the most held stocks (table 1), Q2 saw another significant shift in the rankings, with Nvidia rising to become the second-most popular stock on the eToro platform globally, behind only Tesla. The AI market leader ranked fourth at the end of Q1 and seventh three months earlier, but has continued to attract new users, fuelled by another 37% surge in its share price over the latest quarterly period. The ranking in the preferences of Romanian retail investors changed, too (table 2). While the first two places are held by Tesla and Nio, UiPath climbed to third place, replacing Apple, which went to the fourth place. Nvidia is also moving one spot up on fifth, replacing Microsoft, while Meta, the owner of the Facebook platform, is now in the 9th position, pushing Alibaba to 10th place.

Whilst Nvidia is dominating AI headlines, other firms in the space are also attracting attention from investors with several businesses with lofty AI ambitions featuring on the ‘top risers’ list (table 3). This includes Dell, which has seen a 45% increase in the number of holders on the eToro platform. The business has made several AI product announcements in recent times while also being endorsed as a potential supplier for Elon Musk’s new start-up xAI.

Semiconductor chip makers Broadcom (+33% increase in users) and Micron Technology (+27%) also saw significant growth in users on the platform, as did MongoDB (+24%), a business which helps other companies to deploy generative AI.

Continuing the trend which emerged in Q1, several European stocks featured on the top risers list, with French energy firm Air Liquide (+139%) ranking top, as it attracted major interest following news that it will supply energy to semiconductor chipmaker Micron. Santander (+32%) and Spanish energy firm Repsol (+26%).

Romanian investors favored Nike, Nvidia AMD, Intel but also UiPath, the Romanian born unicorn in their investment preferences. They also reduced their positions in Apple, Paypal and Coca-Cola.

Commenting on the data, eToro Analyst Bogdan Maioreanu, said: “There are diverse opportunities for investors in the AI space and it’s refreshing to see eToro users look across the whole ecosystem. Nvidia’s stratospheric rise means it will continue to take centre stage, but there is no doubt that other big AI winners will emerge in various shapes and sizes.

“It’s also interesting to see that retail investors are looking beyond AI, and more broadly tech, with several European firms across autos, energy and financial services garnering a lot of attention in Q2. We are seeing renewed interest of Romanian investors in the  Romanian-born “unicorn” UiPath. With the stock being down 49% since the start of this year, perhaps Romanian investors bought the dip. It is always important to be diversified across sectors, but particularly so when the interest rate environment is changing. There is also no guarantee that all AI stocks will flourish.”

Amongst the ‘top fallers’ list in Q2 (table 2), it was a mixed bag, with eToro users appearing to cash in on profits from the likes of Reddit (-40%), following its March IPO, and ZIM Shipping (-23%), with the latter’s share price having almost doubled this year. Investors also appeared to lose patience with Puma and its poor share price performance, with the firm seeing a 16% drop in holders on the eToro platform in Q2.

eToro Analyst Sam North, said: “In the last quarter, retail investors have demonstrated their ability to capitalise on market momentum, as seen with the success of investments such as Reddit and ZIM shopping. Recognising when to take profits and reinvest elsewhere is a fundamental aspect of smart investing. It’s not just about the gains you make, but also about the opportunities you seize when the market presents them.”

Table 1: Shows stocks most widely held by eToro users globally and their position last quarter

Table 2: Shows stocks most widely held by Romanian eToro users and their position last quarter

Table 3: Shows which stocks have seen the biggest proportional increase and decrease in holders on the eToro platform quarter on quarter globally

The battle for AI is fueled by Nvidia