Goldman Sachs urges investors to focus on ‘HALO’ stocks tied to heavy assets and low obsolescence

According to CNBC, Goldman Sachs said Tuesday it is advising investors to focus on “HALO” stocks—an acronym it coined for companies with “heavy assets, low obsolescence”—arguing that higher real yields, geopolitical fragmentation and supply-chain rewiring have shifted equity leadership toward tangible productive assets. Goldman’s analysts said markets have increasingly rewarded capital-intensive companies, while the AI race has turned many traditionally “capital light” firms into major spenders; they expect data centers, semiconductors, utilities and defense to account for more than 40% of global capital expenditure this year. Goldman said its Equity Research team’s HALO recommendations span five themes— infrastructure, basic materials, aerospace and defense, manufacturing and consumer platforms, and the “physical layer of technology”—and listed buy-rated names including Enel, E.ON, ENGIE, RWE, SNAM, Naturgy Energy Group, EDP Renewables, Orsted, Veolia Environnement, Prysmian, Nexans, VINCI, Getlink and Flughafen Zürich; Shell, BP, Eni, Repsol, Antofagasta, Holcim, Air Liquide and BASF; Airbus, Safran, BAE Systems, Melrose Industries, Rolls-Royce and Rheinmetall; Volvo, BMW, Porsche, Nestlé, Heineken, Lotus Bakeries, Marks & Spencer and International Consolidated Airlines Group; and ASML, ASMI, Infineon, Deutsche Telekom, Orange and Telefónica. The note also cited recent stock moves including Rolls-Royce up 56% over the past year, Airbus up around 19%, BAE Systems up around 7%, and Rheinmetall down 35% over the past 12 months after more than doubling in 2025, and said the HALO trade is a global trend being replicated across regions.