Data from online broker eToro revealed which companies saw the biggest proportionate change in holders quarter-on-quarter in the second quarter of 2026. The data also shows the 10 most held stocks on the platform.

Flash memory and storage company SanDisk topped the global list of the biggest risers, followed by ServiceNow, Marvell Technology, Constellation Energy and Planet Labs.

The top risers ranking suggests that investors are looking beyond big tech and positioning themselves along the AI value chain. SanDisk and Western Digital saw a 151% and 49% increase in holders respectively, as the rapid buildout of data centres has created a worldwide memory and storage shortage. In third place with an 84% rise in holders, Marvell Technology highlights continued investor interest in the networking and semiconductor hardware that are also powering AI data centres.

In software, ServiceNow made the top risers list for the second quarter in a row, this time in second place (+102%), while Intuit made sixth place (+68%). This suggests investors remain confident in companies embedding AI into enterprise applications, defying concerns about the so-called ‘Saaspocalypse’.

Energy infrastructure also emerged as a key investment theme. Constellation Energy, the largest operator of nuclear power plants in the United States, ranked fourth globally (+83%), while Bloom Energy, which manufactures solid oxide fuel cells to provide combustion-free power on site, narrowly missed the top ten in eleventh place (+38%). The pair suggest retail investors are increasingly backing companies expected to benefit from rising electricity demand driven by AI.

Lale Akoner, Global Market Strategist at eToro, said:

“From a portfolio perspective, the data indicates that we are entering a more mature phase of the AI trade. Retail investors are no longer just buying the most obvious winners; they are starting to look for where supply bottlenecks, pricing power and capital spending are likely to create the next layer of beneficiaries, such as in memory storage and power generation. Although the fact that the most held stocks on eToro have not changed shows that retail investors remain committed to the biggest tech companies like Nvidia, they are actively diversifying into other parts of the AI sector.

“Energy remains on retail investors’ radar, as it was a major theme in Q1’s top risers as well, but the perspective is evolving. While last quarter’s rankings were dominated by oil companies due to Strait of Hormuz disruptions creating a supply shock, this quarter, investors have turned their attention to nuclear power and low-carbon energy infrastructure. This reflects both the growing electricity needs of AI and a stronger focus on energy security as governments seek to reduce reliance on volatile fossil fuel markets.”

The commercial space sector enjoyed renewed interest during the quarter in which SpaceX staged the world’s largest ever IPO. Planet Labs ranked fifth globally (+75%), Intuitive Machines placed eighth (+60%), and further down the list, satellite communications company AST SpaceMobile ranked 14th (+37%). Together, the trio point to growing investor optimism around the long-term commercial opportunities in outer space.

Lale Akoner said:

“As thematic investing continues to attract significant capital, space is emerging as one of the newest focal points. Strong ETF flows already suggest that investors increasingly view it as a standalone investment theme rather than a niche corner of the market. The industry remains in the early stages of development, meaning many investment cases still depend on future adoption and long-term growth. The space stocks featured in the top risers list demonstrate that retail investors are seeing opportunities in space exploration, as well as data and satellite communications.”

Looking at the ‘top fallers’ ranking, retail investors mainly reduced their holdings in oil and gas companies, including Equinor (fourth place, -25% in holders), ConocoPhillips (seventh place, -22%), Occidental Petroleum (eighth place, -21%) and Petroleo Brasileiro (tenth place, -20%). A couple of health insurers, Oscar Health (second place, -32%) and UnitedHealth (sixth place, -25%) were also named. At the top of the fallers list, though, is buy-now-pay-later company Sezzle (-74%).

Lale Akoner added:

“Traditional energy and healthcare names feature heavily among the fallers. The drop in oil and gas stock holders looks like the unwinding of last quarter’s trade, when investors moved into energy on the back of the Strait of Hormuz supply shock. As that disruption has eased, some appear to be rotating out of energy and into the emerging growth themes now topping the risers list.”

The most held stocks on eToro have not changed this quarter, still led by Nvidia, Tesla, Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple. These stocks have not seen significant changes in holders either, suggesting that retail investors have not retreated from Big Tech.