15 S&P 500 stocks are up 100% or more this year — here's what they have in common

15 S&P 500 stocks are up 100% or more this year — here's what they have in common Brian Sozzi · Executive Editor Wed, August 19, 2026 at 9:54 AM EDT 2 min read It has been a big year for executives and investors at 15 companies in the S&P 500 ( ^GSPC ), and it's all because of one factor. You guessed it: the Great AI Boom. There are now 15 companies in the S&P 500 up 100% or more this year (see chart below), per Yahoo Finance analysis. Sandisk ( SNDK ) is leading the way with an almost 600% gain on the year amid strong demand for its memory chips at ever higher prices. More from Yahoo Scout The list is interesting for several reasons. First of all, chip king Nvidia ( NVDA ) isn't on the list, as its stock is "only" up 18% year to date. Second, on the list are old tech giants that have pivoted hard to partaking in the AI infrastructure build-out — see Dell ( DELL ), Intel ( INTC ), and Hewlett Packard Enterprise ( HPE ). Finally, the list is a sign that the AI trade is broadening beyond hyperscalers like Amazon ( AMZN ) and the aforementioned AI chip leader Nvidia. Marathon Petroleum ( MPC ) and Valero ( VLO ) are front and center here. If you don't think the many AI data centers being built in this country need a lot of fuel, well, then you are seriously missing a screw. A year for the record books, for some. To be sure, this has been another impressive year on the AI front. Nvidia alone hit an all-time high of $236 on May 14, per Yahoo Finance AlphaSpace data. Th…