For the last few years – and in 2025, especially – the so-called ‘Magnificent 7’ stocks have been the undisputed engine of equity market performance, driving a disproportionate share of global market capitalisation gains and investor sentiment.
Together, they’ve been shaping not only the US stock market but also the trajectory of global capital flows. How? Because their sheer market size means that gains – or losses – in these companies ripple through major indices, ETFs, and global portfolios, with all of them also being leaders that drive economic expansion.
But as we all know, markets can change very quickly. Although the Magnificent 7 has been central to the bull market narrative in 2025, that doesn’t necessarily mean it will continue throughout Q4. There are ways, however, to gauge whether their impact will persist – and that starts with understanding how each company is performing in key growth areas.
The Magnificent 7: Explained
Before we get into that, let’s first look at what the Magnificent 7 actually refers to. This is essentially a modern, expanded version of FAANG, which was a term coined in 2017 to describe the top five most popular tech shares in the world: Meta (formerly known as Facebook), Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Alphabet (also known as Google).
While FAANG captured the top tech names of the late 2010s, the Magnificent 7 adds three more market leaders to the basket, Microsoft, Tesla, and NVIDIA, whose influence in cloud computing, automobiles, and AI has become central to the current market narrative. The full list of the Magnificent 7 therefore includes:
- Apple
- Microsoft
- Alphabet
- Amazon
- Meta
- NVIDIA
- Tesla
The Performance of the Magnificent 7
In terms of their performance, throughout 2025, the Magnificent 7 have continued to outperform much of the broader market, driven by strong growth in their respective core areas. Apple, for instance, has seen steady demand for the iPhone 17 series, which has far outpaced iPhone 16 sales in China and the US. Meanwhile, Microsoft has benefited from surging cloud adoption and enterprise AI deployments, with Azure continuing to gain market share and drive higher margins across its business solutions portfolio.
When it comes to Alphabet, the company has maintained its dominance in digital advertising, particularly with YouTube and search. Although it had a brief setback with advertising spend slowing in certain international markets – mainly due to macroeconomic uncertainty – it hasn’t really harmed its momentum, and it remains a big player in driving overall stock market performance.
For Amazon and Meta, both companies have also shown resilience, with Amazon continuing to balance modest growth in e-commerce with robust expansion in AWS, and Meta seeing vast improvements in platform monetisation. NVIDIA and Tesla, too, have been standout performers, fueled by unprecedented demand for GPUs, AI infrastructure, energy storage, and electric vehicles.
There have been several events that have threatened to shake them, of course. As mentioned previously, advertising spend has slowed in several international sectors, and as well as this, rising interest rates and ongoing economic uncertainty have put pressure on high-growth valuations. But it seems they’re called the ‘Magnificent 7’ for a reason.
But despite these challenges, the underlying strength of their core businesses, combined with continued innovation and global reach, has made them well-positioned to navigate these challenges and maintain a significant influence on the stock market.
Driving Global Growth in Q4
With this in mind, it certainly seems likely that they will continue to drive global growth in Q4. Not just because of their dominance in key technology and consumer sectors, but their large market capitalisations essentially mean that even modest gains can have outsized effects on major indices.
That said, it is important to temper expectations. Slowing macroeconomic growth, high valuations, and potential regulatory hurdles could all moderate their impact, so it’s never a good idea to form an outright assumption that bullish momentum will continue.
It’s likely, sure. But if you’re involved in the stock market, you need to be ready to adapt to sudden market changes, so it’s always wise to diversify your portfolio and have all the necessary risk management strategies in place should anything unexpected happen.
I’m Laura Wilson, a passionate blogger and content creator with a deep interest in business, finance, and entrepreneurship. I’ve had the opportunity to write for several premium blogs, sharing insights & practical advice for individuals & small businesses. I’m the founder and publisher of ukbusinessmag.co.uk, where I focus on creating valuable, easy-to-understand content to help UK startups & SMEs grow.
