Legendary investor and famous contrarian Sir John Templeton once said, “The time of maximum pessimism is the best time to buy.” The S&P 500 is down 3.7% through March 20, and though we are far from maximum pessimism, many investors feel a little discouraged at the volatility and lackluster performance of the equities markets. It is during times like these that we should take Templeton’s advice to heart.
The stocks below are a good place to start. All five companies have bucked the downward trend and have beat the market handily over the last month and for all of 2025. It’s impossible to predict how the market will perform down the road, but it’s clear that these companies have something special going for them.
This post originally appeared at U.S. News & World Report.