Bank of America highlighted a few stocks that investors can scoop up to boost their returns as the third quarter kicks off, including a streaming play with double-digit upside potential. The stock market wrapped up a solid second quarter of 2026. The S & P 500 ended the period nearly 15% higher, while the Nasdaq Composite surged 21.4% for its best quarterly performance since 2020. To prepare investors for third quarter, Bank of America shared a list of stock picks for the period. The group includes names from an array of sectors, including retail and consumer goods to technology and payments. See the list below for a few names that made the cut. Spotify Shares of the music and podcast streaming platform could climb in the near term due to a combination of catalysts, including its new products and pricing tiers for its subscription service, according to Bank of America. Spotify has "laid out an impressive compelling product roadmap and attractive financial targets, and now the focus will turn to execution," analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said in a recent note to clients. "We now see even greater clarity for continued profit and [free cash flow] growth including … price increases, new tiers … [and] further penetration of incremental services including podcasting, audiobooks and fitness." Spotify's artificial intelligence-driven tool that allows users to legally create and distribute remixes of songs from licensed catalogs could drive further value to its shares, according to Bank of America. Ehrlich rates Spotify a buy. She also has a target of $685 on shares, suggesting about 41% upside from Thursday's close. Shares have fallen more than 16% in the year to date. Visa Visa offers investors a way to play the shift from cash to electronic payments, and its shares could climb in the third quarter, Bank of America said. "Visa is our top way to own the secular cash-to-electronic shift: a durable double-digit revenue/teens-[earnings per share] compounder with a wide debit and credit moat, a fast-growing value-added-services engine (~30% of net revenue), and $33B of buyback firepower," analyst Matthew O'Neill said in a note to clients. "Visa remains a high-quality franchise at a defensive multiple into a catalyst-rich window." Shares of the payments giant touched a new 52-week high on Thursday, and the stock is up more than 3% in 2026. O'Neill rates Visa as buy and his $410 price target suggests 13% upside from Thursday's close. Walmart The superstore stock has plenty of runway as Walmart 's efforts to court more affluent consumers begin to pay off, according to Bank of America. "We remain convinced that the current backdrop consisting of strength from the upper income consumer and some caution from the value-seeking consumer is conducive for Walmart to accelerate share gains," analyst Christopher Nardone said in a note to clients. The analyst has a buy rating on Walmart, as well as a $144 price target that implies nearly 29% upside from Thursday's close. Nardone added that Walmart has two main advantages that make its online and brick-and-mortar stores appealing to customers across income brackets: "price and speed." Shares are roughly flat in 2026. Other names on the list include IBM , JPMorgan Chase and Snowflake .
<small>Source: CNBC</small>
