The so-called “Magnificent Seven” - Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Nvidia (NVDA), Tesla (TSLA), and Meta (META) - have dominated headlines and investor attention for years, delivering eye-catching returns and reshaping markets. Investors often view these tech giants as reliable safe havens due to their massive market capitalizations, innovative technologies, and widespread market influence. However, these stocks have underperformed in 2025, primarily due to the turbulence caused by President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, which have created significant uncertainty around the global economic outlook.

So, let’s try to find some better alternatives. Fortunately, Barchart provides us with the tools to make that possible. Let me show you how I identified two top tech stocks that are currently much better buys than the Magnificent Seven.

Screening Top Tech Stocks

• Load a Screener: I’ve selected Top Tech Stocks here. With Barchart, you can choose from many other screeners, such as strong volume gains, fundamentally fine, defensive stocks, golden cross, and many others.

This automatically set the following parameters:

• Market Sectors: Computer and Technology. This is obvious, given that we are searching for top tech stocks.
• 5-Day Average Volume: This parameter is set to exceed the 20-day average volume to identify stocks with fresh momentum.
• Market Cap: The minimum threshold is set at $1 billion to filter out lower-quality stocks.
• New 6-Month High Date: This parameter is set to trigger within the past week to identify stocks that are currently “in play” and showing upward momentum, indicating that positive factors may be influencing market sentiment toward them.

After clicking “SEE RESULTS,” the screener returned these two names: VeriSign (VRSN) and TIM S.A. (TIMB). With that, let’s take a closer look at these stocks.

Top Tech Stock #1: VeriSign

With a market capitalization of $23.4 billion, VeriSign (VRSN) manages the directory for all .com and .net domains globally and provides name registry services, positioning it as an essential component of the worldwide internet infrastructure. The company’s servers handle over 400 billion transactions daily and have maintained network security for 27 consecutive years. It functions as a regulated monopoly through agreements with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

In 2003, the company reached an agreement with the ICANN to relinquish its .org domain to foster increased competition, retaining the .com domain, which already had 34 million registered addresses, in exchange. Since then, VeriSign has consistently renewed its agreements with the ICANN to maintain its operation of the .com and .net domains and has expanded its portfolio to include the .cc domain, along with a variety of other domain names such as Local Language Domain Names and new generic top-level domains (TLDs).

Shares of the domain name registry company have climbed 19.4% year-to-date, outperforming the Magnificent Seven stocks as well as the broader market.

VeriSign operates a distinct business model. The company does not directly sell domain names to end users; instead, it manages relationships with about 2,000 registrars accredited by the ICANN, who in turn resell the domain names to the end users. VRSN annually pays the ICANN $0.25 for each .com domain and $0.75 for each .net domain registered. At the same time, it charges registrars $10.26 for each .com domain and $10.91 for each .net domain, which they then resell to businesses and individuals. Notably, the .com agreement was recently extended through November 2030, and the .net agreement will continue until July 2029. Under these agreements, VeriSign has the right to raise .net prices by 10% annually and .com prices by 7% during the last four years of the six-year term.

With that, VeriSign possesses the beneficial attributes of being a highly predictable and defensive business. It’s also worth noting that Warren Buffett is a strong supporter of the business, with VeriSign being a long-term holding for Berkshire Hathaway, which owns 14% of the company. Following the acquisition of an additional more than 470,000 shares in December 2024, it has become Berkshire’s (BRK.B) 13th-largest publicly traded holding.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the company’s revenue grew 3.9% year-over-year to $395.4 million, beating Wall Street’s consensus. Its primary revenue is the fees it charges registrants for .com and .net domains. More precisely, revenue is primarily driven by renewal rates and new domain registrations, both of which are influenced by the overall health of the economy and the formation of new businesses seeking an online presence. In Q4, renewal rates improved sequentially and year-over-year to 73.9%. New registrations also increased both sequentially and year-over-year, with 9.5 million new domains registered in Q4. However, the domain name base saw a reduction of 500,000 names during Q4, primarily due to reductions by registrars based in the U.S. and China.

Turning to profitability, Verisign reported a net income of $191 million and GAAP EPS of $2.00 for Q4, compared to a net income of $265 million and a GAAP EPS of $2.60 in the same quarter the previous year. Management pointed out that a $69.3 million income tax benefit in Q4 2023 affected the year-over-year comparison. Notably, the bottom line figure missed expectations by a penny.

Meanwhile, the company continues to hold a stable financial and liquidity position, with $600 million in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities at the end of the year. In 2024, the company returned $1.2 billion to shareholders by repurchasing 6.6 million shares.

Looking ahead, management anticipates revenue of approximately $1.63 billion for FY25, marking a 4.7% increase year-over-year at the midpoint. Still, CEO Jim Bidzos acknowledged that the domain name base is projected to decrease between 2.3% and 0.3% year-over-year in 2025.

According to Wall Street estimates, VRSN is expected to post 8.5% year-over-year EPS growth to $8.68 in FY25. Moreover, analysts project a 4.2% year-over-year increase in the company’s revenue to $1.62 billion.

In terms of valuation, the company may not appear cheap, but I believe its valuation is justified. VRSN’s forward P/E ratio (Non-GAAP) stands at 28.4x, which exceeds the sector median of 18.83x yet remains below its five-year average of 30.86x.

VeriSign’s stock has a unanimous “Strong Buy” rating from the two analysts covering it. The mean price target for VRSN stock is $267.50, indicating upside potential of 8.2% from Friday’s closing price.

Top Tech Stock #2: TIM S.A.

TIM S.A. (TIMB), a subsidiary of TIM S.p.A., ranks as the third-largest telecommunications company in Brazil. The company primarily operates in mobile voice and data services, broadband Internet access, value-added services, and a variety of other telecommunications offerings on a smaller scale. Its market cap currently stands at $7.12 billion.

TIM S.A. remains an attractive investment due to its defensive appeal, robust dividends, and low volatility. Shares of the telecommunications company have rallied 26.8% year-to-date, with much of the gains occurring following strong Q4 earnings results released in mid-February. Still, it’s worth mentioning an economic crisis in Brazil, where inflation is above target and interest rates are in the double digits and expected to approach the high teens by year-end. This crisis weighed significantly on TIMB stock in 2024.

Recently, Wall Street analysts have demonstrated support for TIMB stock. Last Wednesday, Scotiabank raised its price target on the stock to $19.10 from $17.60 and kept an “Outperform” rating. Also, Barclays boosted the firm’s price target on the stock to $16.50 from $16 and maintained an “Equal Weight” rating in mid-March.

Let’s now focus on the primary factor behind TIMB’s stock outperformance in 2025 - strong Q4 earnings results. TIMB stock soared 8.7% following the earnings release and continued its upward trajectory in subsequent trading sessions. Its normalized net revenues stood at R$6.6 billion, up 5.7% year-over-year and exceeding Wall Street’s expectations. The company’s main revenue source is mobile telephone services, accounting for just over 90% of total revenues. In Q4, revenue from this segment increased by 5.4% year-over-year to R$6 billion, primarily driven by growth in postpaid services. At the same time, revenue from fixed services remained largely unchanged, reflecting the company’s diminished focus on this segment.

Turning to the bottom line, TIMB posted adjusted EPS of $0.37, missing expectations by $0.02. The earnings miss was primarily attributed to an EBITDA margin of 50.5%, only 0.3 percentage points higher than the same period last year. TIM S.A. reported an EBITDA of R$3.35 billion, a 6.2% increase year-over-year, primarily driven by stronger-than-expected revenue from mobile devices, which carry lower margins due to the company subsidizing these products to foster customer loyalty.

Another highlight was the strong guidance issued for the years 2025 to 2027. The company forecasts a service revenue growth of approximately 5% in 2025 and a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5% through 2027, sustaining stability. EBITDA is expected to remain strong, with a projected annual increase of 6%-8%, alongside disciplined capital expenditures, which are set to stay between R$4.4 billion and R$4.6 billion per year. 

Analysts tracking the company foresee a 21.36% year-over-year increase in its EPS to $1.36 for fiscal 2025, with revenue expected to grow 3.28% from the previous year to $4.54 billion.

Meanwhile, TIM S.A. pays dividends. Shares of TIMB currently yield a dividend (TTM) of 9.66%, well above the sector median of 3.79%. Notably, the company aims to distribute between R$3.9 billion and R$4.1 billion in 2025, a significant increase compared to the R$3.5 billion distributed the previous year.

Despite solid YTD performance, TIM S.A. remains attractive from a valuation standpoint. Priced at 10.87 times forward earnings, TIMB stock trades at a discount to the sector median of 11.62x and its five-year average of 14.84x.

Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” on TIM S.A. stock, with a mean target price of $17.32, which indicates upside potential of 16.9% from the stock’s Friday close. Out of the seven analysts covering the stock, three recommend a “Strong Buy” and four give a “Hold” rating.

On the date of publication, Oleksandr Pylypenko did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.