Buy 5 AI Laggards of 2025 to Tap Their Growth Potential in 2026

The AI-driven bull market has continued into 2025, but several AI-exposed names have underperformed year‑to‑date; Zacks flags five Zacks Rank 1–2 stocks—Marvell (MRVL), Atlassian (TEAM), Adobe (ADBE), Workday (WDAY) and Snap (SNAP)—as laggards with meaningful upside potential. Key catalysts cited: MRVL’s data‑center strength (Q3 fiscal 2026 revenue +36.8% YoY), acquisition of Celestial AI and projected revenue/earnings growth of ~21.7%/25.7%; Atlassian’s rapid uptake of Atlassian Intelligence (1M MAUs, 25x YoY AI interactions) and ~20.8%/29.4% growth outlook; Adobe’s broad generative‑AI rollout (Firefly, AI assistants) and ~9.2%/13.3% growth forecast; Workday’s steady cloud traction, Elliott backing and ~12.1%/17.4% growth estimates; and Snap’s Perplexity partnership that will pay $400m over a year from 2026, its 943m MAU base and a buoyant earnings outlook (13.4% revenue, 52.3% EPS growth), with broker targets implying roughly 23–46% near‑term upside across the cohort.

Analysis

Zacks identifies five AI-exposed names—Marvell (MRVL), Atlassian (TEAM), Adobe (ADBE), Workday (WDAY) and Snap (SNAP)—that have lagged year-to-date despite the broader 2023–2025 AI-driven bull market, assigning each a Zacks Rank of 1 or 2 and noting cohort underperformance with double-digit negative returns for several names. Marvell reported fiscal Q3 2026 revenue up 36.8% year‑over‑year, projects next‑year revenue/earnings growth of 21.7%/25.7% and saw its earnings consensus rise 6.3% in the past week; management plans to acquire Celestial AI, which has a hyperscaler contract. Atlassian cites 1 million MAUs for Atlassian Intelligence and a 25x YoY increase in AI interactions with expected revenue/earnings growth of 20.8%/29.4%; Adobe highlights broad generative‑AI rollouts (Firefly) with ~9.2%/13.3% growth guidance; Workday benefits from Elliott’s investment and ~12.1%/17.4% next‑year growth expectations. Snap’s Perplexity deal will pay $400m over one year beginning in 2026 to integrate AI answers for its 943m MAU base and carries a consensus earnings lift; short‑term broker targets imply roughly 23%–46.5% upside across the group. Key execution risks are acquisition/integration timelines, hyperscaler dependence, and the timing of recognized revenue from announced partnerships, while market sentiment remains moderately positive.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Consider selective long positions in MRVL and TEAM given strong recent metric momentum and sizable broker upside, but size positions modestly until Celestial AI integration and continued hyperscaler adoption are evidenced
• Add Adobe and Workday on measured pullbacks to capture stable AI monetization optionality and recurring revenue exposure, monitoring upcoming earnings and any upward revisions to consensus
• Treat SNAP as a catalyst‑driven trade: ante for upside from the $400m Perplexity arrangement beginning 2026 but limit exposure or hedge near term because revenue contributions are timed to next year
• Watch three short‑lead indicators—broker price‑target revisions, near‑term earnings‑estimate upgrades, and concrete customer/hyperscaler deployment announcements—and trim or hedge if those signals stall
• Use dollar‑cost averaging to enter positions in this cohort given prior underperformance despite positive analyst sentiment, and set clear stop levels to protect against execution or timing risk