The new year is under way, and Evercore ISI has some ideas as to what their clients should buy. In a Jan. 2 note, the firm listed more than 20 stocks that could gain ground in 2026. Those include Delta Air Lines and CVS Health . The note also highlighted companies in the communications services, retail and financial services industries, among others. Evercore ISI assembled its list by compiling its analysts favorite stocks with investment horizons of 12 months or longer. These are a few of the stocks that made the cut: Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines is poised to grow as it makes moves to improve margins, particularly amid strong travel trends, according to Evercore. “We continue to believe margin maximization is Delta’s main focus, with support from rational capacity allocation, its position as a premium high-end brand, and the strong AmEx loyalty relationship,” analysts wrote. U.S. airlines have seen improved pricing integrity and close-in demand, which should boost shares across the industry, they noted. They added that business travel is the segment with the most likely chance of improvement as policy uncertainty continues to decline. Evercore ISI has an outperform rating on Delta. It also has a $75 price target, which implies upside of 4.7% from Wednesday’s close. The stock has jumped roughly 17% over the past 12 months. CVS Health The pharmacy operator and health insurance company has room to run due to its strong long-term fundamentals, despite its plans to pull back from Medicare Advantage offerings. There is “potential upside from a variety of areas including above-market Medicare Advantage growth, new pharmacy reimbursement model, growth of the healthcare delivery business, and additional growth investments,” Evercore wrote. CVS has a cheap valuation compared to its peers, the analysts also noted. The stock trades at around 11 times forward earnings, while UnitedHealth has a multiple of 19. Evercore ISI has an outperform rating on CVS Health, as well as a $95 price target which implies upside of 19% from Wednesday’s close. The stock has risen 75% over the past 12 months.
