The Best AI Stocks Wall Street Is Sleeping On in 2026

Are investors really sleeping on the opportunity in artificial intelligence (AI)? Not exactly, but this does not mean every AI stock is getting equal attention. Highfliers like Nvidia are near record highs, and even stocks that have sold off recently, like Palantir Technologies, still sell at stratospheric valuations.

Fortunately, all-time highs and elevated valuations do not define every AI stock. Knowing that, investors can still find opportunity, and these stocks stand out as potential bargains.

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Figma

Figma (NYSE: FIG) stood out through its development tool that allows companies to develop apps, websites, and user interfaces collaboratively. This has allowed it to stand out against competitors such as Adobe and, more recently, Anthropic's AI tool Claude Design.

However, the stock has fallen by more than 85% from its high after a briefly successful initial public offering last summer, which quickly fizzled. Many analysts have questions about whether lower-cost AI tools like Claude Design will upend its business model.

Net dollar retention was 136% in the fourth quarter of 2025, meaning the average long-term customer spent 36% more on the platform than last year. Although companies like Figma have to watch for competition, it is likely that the more serious, professional designers will stay with Figma's higher-precision tool. Investors should also note that Figma uses AI for creation, editing, and automation, helping to maintain its competitive edge.

Customers also don't seem to be leaving the platform. It generated $304 million in the fourth quarter, a 40% increase. Also, despite net losses, it generated $38 million in positive free cash flow, greatly reducing the need for outside capital. Considering that the drop in the stock has led to a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 9, it could lead to a massive recovery as investors become increasingly aware of Figma's value proposition.

SentinelOne

SentinelOne (NYSE: S) stood out in the cybersecurity world by integrating AI into its platform from the outset. This helped it stand out from larger competitors who introduced the technology to their platforms at a later time.

Indeed, cybersecurity is a competitive field, making it more difficult to stand out. Additionally, Anthropic's AI platform Claude released an AI agent that could expose vulnerabilities, causing investors to question their confidence in cybersecurity stocks.

Despite such fears, the company increased its annual recurring revenue (ARR) by 22% in its fiscal 2026's fourth quarter (ended Jan. 31), including an 18% increase among customers spending over $100,000. That appears to counter the narrative that customers have lost confidence in the industry and its products.

This extended to overall financials. In Q4, revenue of $271 million increased by 20% last year, an indication of rising demand for its services. Also, it reported a net loss and $2.3 million in negative free cash flow in Q4, though it came in at a positive $51.9 million for fiscal 2026.

SentinelOne fell over the last year and is down 80% from its all-time high during the pandemic. Still, its price-to-sales (P/S) ratio is 5, giving investors the opportunity to invest cheaply in a cybersecurity platform that embraced AI from the beginning.

Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) has emerged as a digital advertising giant. Its social media platforms, which include Facebook and Instagram, have attracted 3.56 billion people who use at least one of its platforms every day.

This has made it a digital ad giant, but its next growth phase involves AI. It plans to leverage the massive amount of personal data it has accumulated to train AI models. Other platforms are unlikely to have accumulated much of the same personal data, giving Meta a competitive advantage.

Despite that edge, the stock's behavior may leave investors wondering what's going on with Meta stock. It announced that it raised its projected capital expenditures (capex) to the $125 billion to $145 billion range for 2026. That caused its stock to drop following the announcement.

Nonetheless, it is likely the company can afford this investment. In Q1, revenue grew by 33% year over year to $56.3 billion, indicating that its capex spending has boosted the company's financials. Also, the company generated $12.4 billion in free cash flow, a figure that excludes capex. Since it holds $81 billion in liquidity, it can probably afford to make such investments.

Finally, despite that growth, the stock trades at just 22 times earnings. Considering the company's revenue growth and competitive advantage in AI, that valuation arguably makes it too cheap to ignore.

Will Healy has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Adobe, Figma, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, Palantir Technologies, and SentinelOne. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2028 $330 calls on Adobe and short January 2028 $340 calls on Adobe. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.