This month’s First Cut identifies the S&P Composite 1500 index stocks that have the highest price change during the first half of this year compared to their peers. We present the top 10 stocks for each of the three component indexes that constitute the S&P Composite 1500, allowing you to see if leadership varies by company size.

The table provides the price change for the first six months of the year as well as the price change over the last year. The price-earnings (P/E) ratios for the company and its industry highlight the valuation of these stocks, while the recent and expected growth rates reveal trends and expectations in top- and bottom-line growth. Median values for each index are provided for comparison.

One of the clearest themes during the first half of 2026 was the remarkable breadth of the artificial intelligence (AI) investment cycle. Rather than being driven by a handful of mega-cap technology companies, leadership extended across the entire semiconductor ecosystem and into every market-capitalization segment. Twenty-seven of the top 30 performers are from the information technology sector, with most involved in semiconductor manufacturing, memory, storage, testing or AI infrastructure.

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