How to Select the Best Stocks to Invest in 2025: A Practical Guide

The 2025 Context: Volatility and Opportunities

The year 2025 marked a turning point in global financial markets. After record-breaking returns in 2024, investors face a radically different landscape characterized by sharp volatility triggered by new tariff measures imposed by the US administration. The base tariffs of 10% on all imports, along with differentiated rates toward various regions (50% to the European Union, 55% accumulated to China, 24% to Japan), generated an immediate market reaction: widespread declines in stock indices from the United States to Asia, while gold reached all-time highs above $3,300 per ounce.

However, after the March-April correction, markets evolved from initial panic to rebound. Major indices have regained ground and are once again operating near historical highs, reflecting investors’ gradual adaptation to this new environment of trade tensions and economic uncertainty.

Selection Strategy: What to Look for in Stocks to Invest

In this context, selecting the best stocks to invest requires a structured approach. Investors should prioritize:

Multidimensional diversification: Portfolios should be spread across sectors (energy, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, luxury) as well as geographically (United States, Europe, Asia) to mitigate regional risks from trade protectionism.

Financial strength and adaptability: Leading companies in innovation and digitalization maintain growth capacity even in uncertain environments, responding to global structural demands. Robust operating margins and solid cash positions are key indicators.

Monitoring macroeconomic factors: Staying informed about political developments, economic policies, and geopolitical conflicts allows for proactive adjustments. Flexibility in risk management differentiates success from unnecessary losses.

Investment Options: From Individual Stocks to Derivatives

Investors interested in stocks have multiple access routes:

Direct purchase of individual stocks: Through authorized banks or brokers, offering full control over stock selection, though requiring thorough analysis and dedication.

Thematic investment funds: These vehicles include various stocks by country or sector, facilitating automatic diversification. While sacrificing some freedom of choice, operational complexity is reduced.

Derivatives and Contracts for Difference (CFDs): Allow amplifying positions with less initial capital or hedging volatility through leverage. In scenarios of aggressive economic policies and potential trade escalation, these instruments can diversify strategies, always with strict discipline and deep knowledge, since leverage magnifies both gains and losses.

Key Opportunities Analysis in Stocks to Invest in 2025

Emerging Opportunities: Alibaba and the Chinese Tech Revival

Alibaba Group Holding solidified its position after years of regulatory pressure in China. The company announced a $52 billion three-year investment plan in AI infrastructure and cloud computing, complemented by campaigns of 50 billion yuan in coupons to revitalize domestic consumption. In the quarter ending March 2025, it reported revenues of 236.45 billion yuan with an adjusted net growth of 22%, driven by an 18% increase in its Cloud Intelligence division.

The stocks experienced significant volatility: a 35% drop from 2024 highs in January, followed by a 40% recovery by mid-February, and a new retracement after earnings. This volatility reflects concerns over AI investments, trade tensions, and China’s economic slowdown. Nonetheless, depressed prices could present attractive entry points for investors with a long-term horizon.

Pharmaceutical Innovation: Novo Nordisk Against the Current

Novo Nordisk, a Danish company specializing in diabetes and obesity treatments, recorded a 26% sales growth in 2024, reaching $42.1 billion. However, it suffered a sharp 27% decline in March 2025 (largest retracement since 2002) due to intensified competition, especially from Eli Lilly with its drug Zepbound, and disappointment over the experimental drug CagriSema in phase III trials.

The company responded strategically: completed the acquisition of Catalent for $16.5 billion to expand production capacity, and closed a $1 billion deal with Lexicon Pharmaceuticals to license LX9851, an experimental drug with a different mechanism of action. It maintains margins of 43%, and its pipeline includes the dual GLP-1/amylin molecule amycretin with preliminary results showing a 24% weight loss.

Despite competitive challenges and leadership changes, the sustained global demand for therapies against diabetes and obesity supports long-term growth prospects.

Semiconductor Manufacturing: ASML Under Pressure

ASML Holding controls the market for extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) equipment, essential for manufacturing advanced chips. In 2024, it reached sales of €28.3 billion with a gross margin of 51.3%. The first quarter of 2025 recorded €7.7 billion in sales and a record gross margin of 54%, projecting 2025 revenues between €30 billion and €35 billion.

Shares declined 30% over the past year due to multiple factors: reduced spending by clients like Intel and Samsung on advanced equipment (although TSMC and SK Hynix maintain high capex due to AI demand); emerging competition from Chinese lithographers; Dutch trade restrictions in January 2025 projecting a 10-15% reduction in sales to China.

The structural demand for advanced chips for AI and high-performance computing supports the future need for EUV systems. The current price correction could present an opportunity for sector exposure in semiconductors.

US Tech Leader: Microsoft in Transformation

Microsoft reported fiscal 2024 revenues of $245.1 billion (+16% annually), operating income of $109.4 billion (+24%), and net income of $88.1 billion (+22%). The company leads in enterprise AI generation through its Copilot ecosystem and strategic alliance with OpenAI.

Shares corrected 20% from all-time highs in early 2025, reaching an intraday low of $367.24 on March 31, and closed Q1 down 11%. Concerns included relative valuation, Azure growth slowdown, challenging macroeconomic environment, and regulatory investigations by the FTC into monopolistic practices in cloud and cybersecurity.

Nevertheless, Microsoft maintains aggressive investments in AI and cloud: Q3 fiscal 2025 showed revenues of $70.1 billion with a 46% operating margin, while Azure and cloud services advanced 33%. The strategy requires record spending and organizational integration (announcements of over 15,000 layoffs between May-July to redirect resources to AI). The correction could offer an attractive entry point into a leading company with a strong financial position.

Global Luxury: LVMH Navigating Recovery

LVMH consolidated its leadership in luxury with a diversified portfolio: Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Givenchy, Fendi, Tiffany & Co., Bulgari, Sephora, covering fashion, perfumery, cosmetics, jewelry, and wines. In 2024, it reported revenues of €84.7 billion, recurring operating profit of €19.6 billion (margins of 23.1%), demonstrating resilience in a challenging global economic environment.

However, January 2025 saw a 6.7% decline (the largest in over a year), and April experienced an additional 7.7% retracement after Q1 revenues of €20.3 billion (-3%). The US 20% tariff (reduced to 10% until July with a threat of 50%) negatively impacted sales, as US sales constitute a significant portion.

The company strengthens competitiveness through AI (platform Dreamscape to personalize prices and experiences) and digital expansion. It identifies growth focuses in Japan (double-digit sales in 2024), Middle East (+6% regional), and India (new Louis Vuitton and Dior stores in Mumbai). The stock correction opens an entry opportunity for investors in this luxury sector leader.

Comparative Matrix: Stock Picks for Investing in 2025

Defensive Posture and Anticipation: Key to Success in 2025

The 2025 outlook demands a balance between opportunism and prudence. While corrections create entry points in fundamentally solid companies, volatility requires complementary defensive strategies:

Bonds and safe assets: Compensate potential stock losses during periods of political or economic uncertainty.

Emotional control: Major declines often precede technical corrections. Panic selling crystallizes unnecessary losses.

Continuous informational vigilance: Active monitoring of political developments, economic decisions, and geopolitical conflicts allows for preventive adjustments. Being informed means being prepared.

Conclusion: Stocks to Invest in 2025 Require Rigorous Analysis

2025 will be remembered as the year when the record-breaking rally of previous cycles gave way to unprecedented volatility. Historical gains never guarantee future results, and the current situation presents unique features that complicate predictions about financial market trajectories.

The winning strategy combines: sector- and geographically diversified portfolios; rigorous selection of financially solid and innovative companies; balanced exposure to traditional assets and derivatives when volatility justifies; and constant attention to macroeconomic contexts shaping cycles. In this environment of increasing trade tensions, analytical discipline and tactical flexibility determine who capitalizes on opportunities versus who suffers avoidable corrections.