Though the outlook for 2025 remains broadly optimistic, the initial months of the year have quickly turned the U.S. stock market both tempestuous and uncertain.
The release of DeepSeek – China’s novel artificial intelligence (AI) model – cast doubt upon the hundreds of billions already invested in big tech and the $500 billion planned for developing even stronger AI infrastructure.
Subsequently, the news and rumors surrounding President Donald Trump’s tariffs, along with the differing international reactions to the strategy, raised questions of what might happen to U.S. companies as the global supply chains appear increasingly at risk of an escalating trade war.
Picks for you
Given the uncertainty, Finbold decided to examine the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and find stocks that are likely to be certain bets for the first quarter (Q1) of the year.
Chevron (NYSE: CVX)
Though relatively far from its January 17 high, the oil giant Chevron (NYSE: CVX) is well-positioned for both long and short-term growth.
Indeed, the Warren Buffett-backed company is one of the biggest players in an industry set to rise between Donald Trump’s ‘drill, baby, drill’ slogan and the reevaluated national strategy of focusing on securing abundant rather than sustainable energy.
In the short term, Chevron’s vast ‘upstream’ operations in the Americas, Australia, Africa, and Central Asia could enable it to not only weather but thrive on the risks emerging from an increasingly volatile situation in the Middle East.
Finally, though their year-to-date (YTD) and 12-month performance remain slightly positive as it had taken them to $154.36 at press time, CVX shares are yet to experience a major rally, meaning there is a comparatively low risk of them proving a dangerous and easily deflated bubble.
Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA)
Despite the fears raised by DeepSeek, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) is more likely to continue its rise than to suddenly experience a sharp drop.
The company remains the main semiconductor supplier in the world and is, thus, set not only to benefit from the planned $500 billion Stargate program but also from the proliferation of AI platforms made possible by the open-source nature of DeepSeek.
Furthermore, the current headwinds have driven the chipmaking powerhouse lower, and NVDA stock is, at its press time price of $134.34, 0.03% up in 2025, meaning that, as long as the bull case remains relatively intact, investors have an opportunity to buy at a discount.
Still, taking a long Nvidia position is not entirely riskless. On the one hand, the company has seen its valuation explode to an extent that is difficult to justify once other metrics of success – such as annual revenue and profits – are considered and juxtaposed with the performance of some of its competitors.
On the other hand, the semiconductor giant’s home-use chips are increasingly getting ‘bricked’ on driver updates or potential PCIe issues, raising quality and compatibility questions with the situation becoming particularly concerning once other reported problems on the AI hardware side are considered.
Featured image via Shutterstock
