Why the Mag 7 Are Lagging the S&P 500 in 2026

Why the Mag 7 Are Lagging the S&P 500 in 2026 The Magnificent 7 delivered over half the S&P 500's gains for three straight years. Now they've stalled. Here's why a market regime change is underway… Written by Larry Benedict Published on Aug 24, 2026 For years, the recipe for making money in the stock market was simple – you owned the Magnificent 7. The Mag 7 includes Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT), Nvidia (NVDA), and Tesla (TSLA). Back in late 2022, this bull market was born alongside the introduction of ChatGPT’s generative AI. Every member of the Mag 7 is leveraged to AI in some way, with share prices soaring amid the hype. From 2023 through the end of 2025, the Mag 7 averaged 55% of the S&P 500’s annual return, delivering over half of the gains seen in the index. But 2026 has been a different story. The Mag 7’s dominance is showing signs of cracking. They are no longer leading the bull market. Through the first half of the year, the Mag 7 are collectively up just 2% compared to the S&P’s gain of 13%. That suggests a regime change is underway. And new leaders are already emerging…

Recommended Links Where More Than $1 Trillion Could Move Next For three years, seven AI giants worth $22 trillion drove the market, and millions of retirement accounts. Now, that money is on the move... And more than $1 trillion could flood into a tiny market Larry Benedict is watching… Creating one opportunity after another. Join Larry free on Wednesday, August 26, at 8 p.m. ET. He’ll reveal where that money is going... and the ONE ticker directly in its path. Click here to register with a single click (When you click the link, your email address will automatically be added to Larry’s guest list.) Must-See Video Reveals Elon’s Next Move Forget SpaceX… Elon’s next BIG bet will leave you speechless. (It’s not what you think!) Click here for more info.

Struggling for Traction We can track the Mag 7 with the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS). Following years of strong returns, MAGS stalled out in late 2025 and has been struggling to keep pace ever since. Here’s the chart: The MAGS ETF made a peak back in late October 2025 at “1.” While the average stock got off to a good start in 2026, MAGS struggled for traction. Following the start of the war between the U.S. and Iran, the downside in MAGS accelerated to “2.” That was a 20% drop from the October peak, putting the Mag 7 in bear market territory. The drawdown was much sharper compared to broader market indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. MAGS recovered along with the rest of the market starting in late March. The rally even saw MAGS make a slight new all-time high at “3.” But new highs didn’t last long, with MAGS falling 14% from the May peak into late June. Overall, the Mag 7 hasn’t really gone anywhere for the past 10 months, despite the S&P 500 continuing to make new highs during that time. Given the weight of the Mag 7 in the S&P 500, that shows new leadership is emerging elsewhere. Tune in to Trading With Larry Live Each week, Market Wizard Larry Benedict goes live to share his thoughts on what’s impacting the markets. Whether you’re a novice or expert trader, you won’t want to miss Larry’s insights and analysis. Even better, it’s free to watch. Visit us on YouTube to catch the latest! The Lag 7 Several years of massive gains drove the Mag 7’s share of indexes like the S&P 500 to historic levels. But record concentration puts index investors at risk of missing out on big gains in other sectors when the trend fades. Just think about it. The top 10 stocks in the S&P 500 currently make up 38% of the index. Since the end of last October, the Mag 7 have gone nowhere, but the S&P is up 13%. In order to counter the lag in the Mag 7, that means other sectors and industries must be jumping higher. But you’d never notice if you only paid attention to the indexes’ action on the surface. We’re already seeing incredibly high return dispersion across stock market sectors this year, which means big moves are happening underneath the market’s hood. That means you need to be actively searching for the new market leaders… or risk getting left behind by holding funds tracking indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. That’s why I’m holding my AI Retirement Reset briefing next week. Given how many retirement accounts hold the Mag 7 and other AI names, this rotation into other sectors is putting any number of portfolios at risk… not just from the Mag 7 falling but also from missing out on the gains of the new market leaders. If you haven’t yet, take a moment to RSVP with one click for Wednesday’s event. There, I’ll give away one ticker benefiting from the new money flows… and break down the larger opportunity I see forming as the market shifts away from the Mag 7… Regards, Larry Benedict Editor, Trading With Larry Benedict Get Instant Trade Alerts on Mobile! Click the icon below from your mobile device to download The Opportunistic Trader app today for one-tap access to trade alerts, issues, and model portfolios for all of Larry’s services. Available in the app store on Android and iPhone. More stories like this Read the latest analysis on hot growth stocks, and market-moving developments My 3-Point Checklist for Every Options Trade Good options trading isn't about predicting every move. Here are three things every trade must offer before you should risk a single dollar… Aug 21, 2026 • 3 min read Why Rising Interest Rates Could Be Here to Stay Bond yields are soaring, with 30-year Treasury bonds at their highest level since 2007. Here's why rising interest rates will matter to your portfolio… Aug 20, 2026 • 3 min read How to Trade Treasury Yields With Options Here’s how to trade rising or falling Treasury yields using options on TLT… Aug 19, 2026 • 3 min read 1125 N Charles St, Baltimore, MD 21201 www.opportunistictrader.com To ensure our emails continue reaching your inbox, please add our email address to your address book. This editorial email containing advertisements was sent to reunisoft.cryptonews@blogger.com because you subscribed to this service. To stop receiving these emails, click here. The Opportunistic Trader welcomes your feedback and questions. But please note: The law prohibits us from giving personalized advice. To contact Customer Service, call toll free Domestic/International: 1-888-208-6550, Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm ET, or email us here. © 2026 Omnia Research, LLC. All rights reserved. Any reproduction, copying, or redistribution of our content, in whole or in part, is prohibited without written permission from Omnia Research, LLC. Privacy Policy | Terms of Use