What Washington's Biggest Stock Traders Are Buying Right Now in 2025

The start of 2025 has marked another boom period for congressional stock trading activity. While the broader market delivered solid returns—Nasdaq up 1.8%, S&P 500 gaining 2.93%, and the Dow Jones climbing 5.08%—a small group of lawmakers has been particularly active in repositioning their portfolios. The trend has reignited debates about conflicts of interest and information asymmetry, but it also offers retail investors a window into what sophisticated political insiders are betting on this year.

The Most Active Players on Capitol Hill

Stock ownership among federal legislators remains pervasive. Last year, 95% of senators and representatives held equity positions, according to watchdog organizations tracking government financial disclosures. A handful of names consistently dominate trading volume rankings.

Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., led the pack in raw transaction counts, completing 526 trades worth $91.05 million throughout 2024. His January filings reveal bullish positions in Goldman Sachs, Block Inc., Apple, and Microsoft call options—a portfolio mix suggesting conviction in financial deregulation and tech sector strength. Gottheimer, who serves on the House Ways and Means Committee, carries a net worth estimated at $50.42 million.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., whose investment approach has drawn substantial media scrutiny, filed five transactions in January alone. Her purchases centered on call options for Amazon, Alphabet, and Nvidia, alongside positions in healthcare infrastructure play Tempus AI and Vistra energy. One of her Tempus AI positions has already appreciated 92%. Pelosi’s estimated net worth of $272.5 million ranks as the second-highest among all members, reflecting her family’s long-term wealth accumulation and stock market exposure.

Other significant traders include Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Fla. (69 trades, $5.99 million volume), Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. (202 trades, $5.53 million), and Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., who has emerged as the most aggressive trader in January 2025.

The January Trading Playbook

Mullin has already disclosed $1.16 million in trading volume this month, accumulating positions across ten individual equities and several funds. His purchases span Applied Industrial Technologies, Coherent, Dell Technologies, Goldman Sachs, MasTec, and education services firm Stride—which has surged 27.99% since his purchase.

Franklin, despite being the third-most active trader in 2024, has taken a cautious stance in early 2025, filing no transactions in January. His 2024 behavior showed net selling pressure, with $5.1 million in sales outpacing $1.27 million in purchases.

Tuberville, a former football coach who logged 1,334 trades since joining the Senate in 2021, has similarly remained dormant through the first month, showing a more defensive posture despite his historical trading frequency.

What This Trading Activity Signals

The concentration of activity among these lawmakers mirrors broader market themes gaining traction: financial sector outperformance under a pro-deregulation administration, technology strength underpinned by artificial intelligence developments, and consumer staples resilience amid inflation considerations.

The Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act mandates 45-day disclosure windows for transactions exceeding $1,000, creating a transparent audit trail. Retail investors monitoring these filings can identify potential thematic opportunities without relying on inside information—simply observing where institutional-level decision-makers are deploying capital.

The Ongoing Controversy

Lawmakers from both parties continue pushing for stricter ownership restrictions. The Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act, reintroduced last month, seeks to ban individual stock ownership by federal legislators, citing 2022 data showing congressional portfolios outperformed the S&P 500 by 17.5 percentage points. Public opinion surveys indicate over 80% bipartisan support for such restrictions.

Yet until legislative action materializes, monitoring the investment moves of Congress’s most prolific traders offers a data-driven lens into sector positioning and individual stock selection at the highest levels of American governance.