The S & P 500 concluded a topsy-turvy — yet winning — first quarter of 2023 on Friday, overcoming a shock to the U.S. banking system in March to rise around 7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite proved to be the real standout, soaring nearly 17 % . The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average , meanwhile, eked out a roughly 0.4% gain. Stocks’ rip-roaring January eased in February, with all three major Wall Street indexes finishing lower in that month. Then came the failure of three U.S. banks within days of each other starting March 8, which spooked investors and further stoked recession fears. The S & P 500 briefly went negative for the year on March 15, a rough session defined by banking concerns spreading to Europe. But as the bank crisis stabilized over the past two weeks, the averages more than bounced back. Here’s a look at the best and worst performers in the Club’s 36-stock portfolio for the first quarter, beginning with the top four gainers. Tech stocks lead the way Nvidia (NVDA) captured the first-quarter crown, soaring an astounding 90% over the three-month period. The chipmaker is not only the Club’s best-performing holding, but the biggest winner in the entire S & P 500. The driving force behind Nvidia’s move: artificial intelligence. The AI buzz sparked by ChatGPT in late 2022 intensified throughout the first quarter, so it’s no surprise that investors flocked toward the company whose technology — both on the hardware and software side — is at the heart of the trend. Nvidia’s fourth-quarter earnings , in late February, only enhanced its shine. It reported better-than-expected results along with strong forward guidance, including quarter-over-quarter growth fueled by its data center and gaming segments. The strength in data center captures the tangible impact AI adoption has for Nvidia. Investors also took solace in the fact the gaming inventory correction that plagued the company in recent quarters is largely in the rearview mirror at this point. That’s another important reason why Nvidia’s stock did so well. NVDA YTD mountain Nvidia’s stock performance year to date. Meta Platforms (META) finished in second place in both the Club’s portfolio and the S & P 500 overall, climbing 76.1%. CEO Mark Zuckerberg dubbed 2023 the “year of efficiency” for the Instagram and Facebook parent . So far, management’s actions have lived up to the billing. Meta in March announced plans to cut 10,000 jobs, on top of 11,000-plus layoffs disclosed in November. Crucially, the social media giant also lowered its 2023 expense outlook for the second time this year. It now stands between $86 billion to $92 billion, down from the $89 billion-to-$95 billion range issued in February. Meta’s initial 2023 expense guidance of $96 billion and $101 billion flabbergasted Wall Street in late October, causing a huge sell-off in the already downtrodden stock. Now, investors are thrilled that Zuckerberg and Co. got serious about better aligned expenses with slower…
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