Market strategists shared their top picks during CNBC's "Halftime Report Final Trades," and the selections painted an interesting picture of where smart money is positioning itself right now.
Joshua Brown, co-founder and CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management, went with Apple Inc. (AAPL). His reasoning? The tech giant is sitting just pennies away from an all-time high and looks primed for a solid quarter. Apple recently shook up its product roadmap, announcing plans to release three new iPhone models over the next three years—a shift from its traditional release schedule that signals the Cupertino company is rethinking its approach to product cycles.
Stephen Weiss, chief investment officer and managing partner of Short Hills Capital Partners, picked Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSM) as his final trade. And there's a compelling story behind the chipmaker right now.
Taiwan Semi has pulled in a staggering 147 billion New Taiwanese dollars (roughly $4.71 billion) in government subsidies over the past two years. That's not coming from just one country, either. The U.S., Japan, Germany, and China are all backing the company's aggressive push to diversify its manufacturing footprint globally. In the third quarter of 2025 alone, the contract chipmaker secured 4.77 billion New Taiwanese dollars in subsidies, bringing the nine-month total for 2025 to 71.9 billion New Taiwanese dollars. When governments around the world are throwing billions at you, it's usually a sign you're doing something they consider strategically important.
Joseph M. Terranova, senior managing director for Virtus Investment Partners, kept it simple with his call: the SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) just keeps climbing higher. Sometimes the best trade is the one that's already working.
Price Action:
- Taiwan Semiconductor shares gained 3.5% to close at $284.64 on Monday.
- SPDR S&P Biotech ETF rose 2.5% during the session.
- Apple shares gained 1.6% to close at $275.92 on Monday.
