These Were the Best and Worst S&P 500 Stocks in April -- Barrons.com

By Nate Wolf and Mackenzie Tatananni

The stock market roared back in April, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 each enjoying their best months since 2020.

Tech stocks, particularly the chip and hardware suppliers behind the artificial-intelligence boom, led the April rally. A look at the best and worst players in the S&P 500 this month underlines that trend.

The Leaders

Intel was the top performer in the large-cap index in April, rising 112% as investors bet on the growth of central processing units, or CPUs, which have become essential to the next wave of AI. The chip maker signed a deal with SpaceX and Tesla and expanded its collaboration with Google. It then validated the hype with a strong earnings report last week, bringing shares to a record high. Intel was a recent Barron's stock pick .

Sandisk jumped 74% in April, which is somehow only the stock's third-best month since spinning off from Western Digital last February. The flash memory supplier has climbed nearly 3,000% since then. Sandisk stock joined the Nasdaq 100 in April, bringing it into a host of index and exchange-traded funds. The company reports quarterly earnings after the closing bell Thursday.

Data-storage company Seagate Technology rose 67% in April. AI both requires and creates more data, and demand for Seagate's storage solutions continues to outstrip supply. The stock rallied 20% on Wednesday alone after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and issuing robust guidance for the current quarter.

Advanced Micro Devices, Intel's closest competitor in the CPU market, gained 64% in April. While Intel had the better month, analysts on Wall Street remain more optimistic about AMD's CPU business. The stock started the month on a 13-day winning streak, dating back to March 31, and got a 14% bump after Intel's earnings report. AMD reports results next Tuesday.

Centene was the lone non-tech stock in the top five, rising 63%. The managed care organization reported earnings of $3.37 a share in the first quarter, well above Wall Street's call for $2.23. The company contracts with state governments to administer Medicaid benefits, and BofA Securities believes that business will improve over the next few years as risk pools stabilize.

The Laggards

Charter Communications posted a 25% drop in April, making it the index's biggest loser. Shares cratered just as much on April 24 and have continued to sell off since. The losses began after the company said it had lost more internet subscribers than anticipated during the first quarter, sparking concerns about competition from fixed wireless and fiber connection services.

Tractor Supply slumped 23% this month. Shares began sliding last week after the company, which sells a range of products from livestock feed to lawn mowers, posted weaker-than-expected earnings for the first quarter and held its full-year guidance steady. Tractor Supply closed down 12% on April 21, making it the worst performer in the S&P 500.

Shares of Insulet shed nearly 20% on the heels of an escalating recall of its Omnipod 5 delivery system. On April 10, Insulet expanded a March safety alert for the Omnipod 5. Certain lots were found to have internal tubing tears, which risk under-delivering insulin to patients. Regulators on Wednesday officially classified this as a Class I Recall, with 476 serious injuries potentially linked to the defect.

EPAM Systems slid more than 17%. The software stock has been battered by industrywide fears of AI disruption and was a victim of a broader selloff gripping the IT services sector. Peers like HCL Technologies issued cautious guidance this month, citing macroeconomic volatility and reduced discretionary spend.

Nike rounded out the list of the top five laggards, posting a 17% decline. Shares fell sharply at the start of April and continued to sell off after the sportswear retailer forecast a low-single-digit percentage drop in sales through the end of the year. Management cited sluggish demand in China and indicated the company's turnaround initiatives were taking shape more slowly than anticipated.

Write to Nate Wolf at nate.wolf@barrons.com and Mackenzie Tatananni at mackenzie.tatananni@barrons.com

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April 30, 2026 14:59 ET (18:59 GMT)

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