You Won’t Believe What the Most Searched Stocks Are

What are the most searched stocks across the United States?

It’s easy to assume popular companies like Apple or Microsoft are the most frequently searched stocks online. However, a recent study by Surety First, an insurance and bond company, shows that neither of these well-known “Magnificent Seven” stocks actually made the top searched list.

Surety First analyzed Google Trends data over the past year to find the most popular stocks in each of the 50 states. Their research revealed that Coca-Cola (KO 0.31%) and GameStop (GME +1.89%) were the most frequently searched stocks, each appearing as the top pick in six different states. This highlights the diverse investment interests across the country, considering the very different nature of these two companies.

Coca-Cola and GameStop

Surety First found that Coca-Cola was the most popular search term in six states: Alabama, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Oklahoma, and South Carolina.

Coca-Cola has been a major investment for Berkshire Hathaway since 1988, when Warren Buffett, then CEO, first bought stock after the stock market crash. It’s been a consistently reliable investment ever since, increasing its dividend payout for an impressive 63 years. A company earns the title of ‘Dividend King’ by raising its dividends every year for at least 50 consecutive years.

Coca-Cola’s stock has risen roughly 14% in the last year and 13% since the beginning of the year. This suggests investors in those states may have chosen the stock for its reliability during a period of market instability.

GameStop was the top search in six states: Colorado, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

GameStop, once a popular ‘meme stock,’ is vastly different from a stable company like Coca-Cola. It exploded in popularity in 2021, driven by social media, but experienced a significant drop in 2022. Since then, the stock price has remained relatively stable, fluctuating between $10 and $35, and currently trading around $23 per share.

GameStop’s sales have been falling, but the company has boosted profits by significantly reducing costs. While investors might be hoping for the stock to recover or experience another surge in popularity like it did before, they should be careful and consider the risks.

Walt Disney and SoFi

Walt Disney Company (DIS) was the leading stock in four states: Connecticut, Kentucky, Louisiana, and West Virginia. The company has been frequently in the news lately, facing both positive and negative attention. Recent headlines have focused on its new sports streaming service, a dispute with YouTube TV, and the announcement that CEO Bob Iger will be stepping down at the end of 2026. Currently, Disney stock is trading at a relatively low price and may be set for growth after a difficult year.

Besides Tesla, SoFi Technologies (SOFI +3.32%) was the most searched stock in multiple states – specifically, Montana, Texas, and Utah. While SoFi was a top performer in 2025 with a 70% return, its stock price has fallen about 30% this year due to a high valuation and the recent downturn in the tech sector.

The stocks most frequently held in both states are Visa, Tesla, Shopify, Palantir, Nokia, and AMC Entertainment.

The most popular search term varied by state: Nvidia topped searches in California, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in Arizona, Amazon in Washington, Bank of America in North Carolina, Alphabet (Google’s parent company) in Iowa, Walmart in Arkansas, AMD in Colorado, Intel in Oregon, and JPMorgan Chase in Delaware. Interestingly, in New York, SPDR, an exchange-traded fund provider, was the most searched term.

2026-02-26 07:15

Coca-Cola and GameStop

Walt Disney and SoFi

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