(This is The Best Stocks in the Market , brought to you by Josh Brown and Sean Russo of Ritholtz Wealth Management.) Josh — One stylized way of thinking about the stock market is that it’s a machine designed to baffle as many people as possible at all times, constantly shifting in response to surprises and in anticipation of things that may or may not take place. I have met thousands of investors over the years who have spent a lifetime trying to master it, only to be fooled at the next turn, or the turn after that. Just when we think we’ve arrived at a narrative that makes sense or a formula that checks out, the world changes and, with it, the market becomes an entirely new version of itself. This is part of the reason Sean and I begin our process with price and trend when assessing the Best Stocks in the Market. We don’t wake up and ask ourselves “What do we know that the market does not?” Instead, we study what is actually happening and ask “What does the market know that we do not?” It’s a very zen and humble approach. Sometimes we’re wearing robes and sitting in a patch of lotus leaves. You’d be into it. Anyway, here’s something the market knows that most people did not at the start of the year — sales at the U.S. automakers are way more heavily influenced by the stock market wealth effect than they are by the impact of tariff-driven inflation. It would have been hard to guess that GM and Ford would have been among the non-tech stock market darlings of 2025 given all of the rhetoric about a slowing economy and the trade war, but here we are. Some of the year’s biggest winners have been the obvious trades like Nvidia and Broadcom. And some have been completely out of left field. Both Ford (F) and GM are riding high on our list of Best Stocks, which has compelled us to dive in. Sean’s going to tell you the story behind the trend and I’ll be back with some risk management commentary. Best Stock Spotlight: GM and Ford Sean – GM has been a halfway decent investment the past decade, annualizing 9.5% a year, but Ford has been horrible. F has annualized 4% a year the past decade, all while the rest of the market was up 15% a year. However, both Ford and GM have quietly put together a great year thus far, amidst a global trade war and soaring auto prices for consumers. GM is up 32% this year in total return, while F is up 41% YTD, which is Ford’s best return since 2021 (GM was up 50% last year). If the year ended yesterday, both Ford and GM would outperform TSLA. GM would outperform by 15.5% and F would outperform by 21.6%. Both GM and F have outperformed TSLA in the same year only 3 times, going back to TSLA’s inception in 2010. Looking at this most recent set of earnings, GM reported a standout quarter earlier this week, sending the stock 15% higher in response which led to GMs second best day since 2009. GM beat on top and bottom lines and raised guidance for the rest of the year. One of the reasons the market is at ATHs during a trade war is that our companies here in the U.S. are exceptionally talented at raising revenue and cutting costs. GM expected $4-5 billion in tariff costs this year alone; however, GM anticipates it can offset that loss by as much as 35%. GM achieved its highest U.S. market share since 2017 at 17% with 710k deliveries. They reported record EV sales and market share at 67k deliveries, representing 16.5% market share. 2026 is expected to be stronger than 2025 with increasing profitability within its EV segment and improvements on warranty and tariff costs. F reported a couple days later, also beating top and bottom line expectations. Ford hit record revenue up 9% year-over-year and the F-series is on track to be America’s best-selling truck for the 49th year. Ford is expected to report 32% EPS growth next year which is top 5 earnings growth within S & P discretionary stocks, all while trading at 9x forward earnings. The wealth effect is at work — higher portfolio values are keeping affluent consumers confident and spending, even in the face of elevated car prices. But help is coming on the price front, as the Fed just lowered rates to sub 4% which will trickle down to auto loans. Cox Automotive, a diversified automotive services firm, expects lower rates in Q1 2026 and meaningful consumer spending with the impact of what could be record-high tax refunds. Risk management Josh — Ford got to $25 for a split second at the beginning of 2022 and it’s been locked in a gruesome downtrend ever since. Until this summer, when the stock broke out in July. It’s spent the last five months consolidating those gains off the lows and now it’s broken out again. This is a $52 billion market cap with a 4.5% dividend yield but the knock on this company is that it’s a year or two behind GM with its turnaround, has higher execution risk and has been too focused on dividends, not focused enough on buybacks like its competitor. If the market believes in its plan, the rally could continue. That said, F has been disappointing believers for what seems like forever, so I wouldn’t want to be long without a leash. I’d use the rising 50-day at around $12, a break back below would be a market signal that belief in the company’s strategy is faltering again. Resistance at $14 should be substantial, which means a definitive break above would be a chance to average up. Let’s do GM. A $65 billion market cap selling at a mid-single digits forward PE multiple, which means it’s being priced for complete and total obsolescence. The dividend is tiny but GM has been returning enormous amounts of capital to shareholders in the form of share repurchases. It’s more profitable than Ford and this difference can be seen in its relative performance over the last few years. The powerful rally we saw in response to earnings this month tells you just how much skepticism there is around the name. That said, I would let the stock come in a few points given how extended it is at the moment. The thrust through $60 was magnificent given the fact that this resistance level has been in place since last November. My best guess is the excitement about the company’s strong results and upbeat outlook subsides and a potential retest in the low 60’s is possible. This is a huge move for a non-tech stock and a wave of profit-taking would be completely normal. If this is wrong and the stock keeps going, so be it, I will have missed this one. I’m curious to see what happens if and when it gets back down toward the top of that gap in the $62 area. Longs should use that as their downside protection level, if GM falls back into the gap things get murky. DISCLOSURES: (None) All opinions expressed by the CNBC Pro contributors are solely their opinions and do not reflect the opinions of CNBC, NBC UNIVERSAL, their parent company or affiliates, and may have been previously disseminated by them on television, radio, internet or another medium. THE ABOVE CONTENT IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY . THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSITUTE FINANCIAL, INVESTMENT, TAX OR LEGAL ADVICE OR A RECOMMENDATION TO BUY ANY SECURITY OR OTHER FINANCIAL ASSET. THE CONTENT IS GENERAL IN NATURE AND DOES NOT REFLECT ANY INDIVIDUAL’S UNIQUE PERSONAL CIRCUMSTANCES. THE ABOVE CONTENT MIGHT NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUR PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES. 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