3 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks I'd Buy to Take Advantage of a Golden Opportunity

Source The Motley Fool

Key Points

  • Nvidia continues to rapidly grow and dominate the computing market.

  • Sandisk has another year of strong growth ahead.

  • A new business unit from Meta Platforms could turn the stock around.

  • 10 stocks we like better than Nvidia ›

The market is presenting investors with a golden buying opportunity for some of the top names in the artificial intelligence (AI) investment space. At the top of my list are some familiar names and longtime winners. Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA), Sandisk (NASDAQ: SNDK), and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) top my list as the best stocks to buy now, and I think there could be even more growth ahead for each of these stocks.

With the latest sell-off surrounding AI stocks, now is the perfect time to load up on shares, as these deals may not last forever.

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Investor looking at cheap AI stocks.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Nvidia

Nvidia has been a long-term market winner, starting in 2023 when its GPUs became the go-to computing unit for the data center build-out. Nothing has really changed since then, and Nvidia investors have enjoyed several years of jaw-dropping growth that has propelled Nvidia to become the world's largest company by market cap.

NVDA Revenue (Quarterly YoY Growth) Chart

NVDA Revenue (Quarterly YoY Growth) data by YCharts

However, 2026 hasn't been a great year for Nvidia so far, and investors are disappointed by its underperformance. But I think Nvidia's time is right around the corner. Historically, Nvidia has had a strong second half of the year, as the first half is often marked by skepticism about the health and longevity of the AI data center build-out. In the second half of the year, projects start to emerge regarding plans for data center build-outs, causing the stock to rise, as Nvidia is a primary beneficiary of this spending.

I think the same thing will occur again this year, and Nvidia has already been dropping hints about 2027's projections. In 2026, the AI hyperscalers are estimated to spend around $650 billion on data centers. However, next year, Nvidia believes this figure will be north of $1 trillion. If that's the case, then Nvidia's stock will likely soar in the latter half of the year, as none of this growth is priced into Nvidia's stock right now.

2. Sandisk

Recommending Sandisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) now may seem like investing malpractice, but the reality is it's still a great deal. Sandisk's stock has been the best performer in the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) this year, rising around 660% so far. However, thanks to a recent sell-off, Sandisk's stock is now down around 20% from its all-time high.

I think that's just short-term profit-taking, as who wouldn't want to capture some of those incredible gains that it has delivered in 2026? The reason Sandisk has risen so much comes from its involvement in the memory chip space. There isn't enough memory supply to meet the demands of data centers, so prices on chips are skyrocketing as a result.

This is allowing Sandisk to make more from each product sold, and despite a strong 2026 so far, there could be more gains in store. For fiscal year (FY) 2027 (ending June 2027), Wall Street estimates 143% revenue growth, so there is a lot more coming Sandisk's way.

At only 9 times forward earnings, Sanisk stock really isn't all that expensive for its growth, and I could easily see the stock doubling from here.

3. Meta Platforms

Last is Meta Platforms, and there has been a major sentiment shift in its stock in recent days. Meta is one of the AI hyperscalers spending heavily on data centers, however, it doesn't have a lot to show for it. While it has utilized some of its AI breakthroughs to improve its ad business, the company hasn't delivered on any of its lofty promises to produce a personal superintelligence model. This has some investors concerned, as other AI hyperscalers are utilizing a large chunk of their data centers for cloud computing, which generates revenue.

However, that could be changing. Several reports speculate that Meta is forming a cloud computing division to sell excess computing power, replicating already successful cloud computing businesses. This could open up a new revenue stream for Meta, making the stock an attractive buy, as the market is fairly bearish on it right now.

META PE Ratio (Forward) Chart

META PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

At 19.6 times forward earnings, Meta stock is cheaper than the S&P 500 at 21.7 times forward earnings, despite Meta growing at a solid 33% pace last quarter. I think market conditions are ripe for Meta's stock to rally, and now is the perfect time to buy if Meta can report Q2 results and elaborate further on its upcoming cloud computing business.

Should you buy stock in Nvidia right now?

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*Stock Advisor returns as of July 14, 2026.

Keithen Drury has positions in Meta Platforms and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Meta Platforms and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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