Two Overlooked Giants From the Magnificent Seven Are Still Positioned to Deliver: A 698% Lesson on Selective Buying

The Magnificent Seven’s Uneven Performance - Why Some Laggards Are Worth Your Attention

Between 2015 and the close of 2024, the so-called Magnificent Seven – a collection of mega-cap tech names anchored by Nvidia and Apple, with strong contributions from Alphabet – racked up roughly 700% in gains. That’s the kind of performance that draws headlines. Yet within this elite group, performance diverges sharply. While some have soared, others have merely kept pace or even stumbled. Interestingly, two of these seemingly tired performers are quietly building the fundamentals needed for the next leg up.

Amazon: The Cloud Powerhouse Market Has Undervalued

When most people think of Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), retail and logistics come to mind first. But that’s precisely where investors are getting it wrong. The real profit engine sits elsewhere – specifically in Amazon Web Services.

Here’s the numbers reality: AWS represents just 18% of total company revenue, yet it generates 60% of operating income. This lopsided contribution tells you everything about where Amazon’s future wealth comes from. Research from Mordor Intelligence forecasts that the cloud computing sector will expand at a 21% annual clip through 2030, fueled largely by ongoing artificial intelligence adoption. That means AWS’s contribution to the bottom line won’t just grow – it will accelerate dramatically.

But there’s a second, less discussed engine worth noting: Amazon’s transformation of its retail platform into an advertising juggernaut. Over the last four quarters, the company pulled in $64 billion in advertising revenue from sellers bidding for premium placement on Amazon.com. To put that in perspective, it’s more than the entire e-commerce arm’s annual operating profit. Forrester Research estimates the worldwide retail media market will balloon from $184 billion today to $312 billion by 2030. Amazon is positioned to capture a disproportionate share of this growth.

The stock has lagged its peers since early 2025, weighed down by tariff concerns and recession fears that didn’t materialize. That’s created a rare dislocation for patient investors.

Meta Platforms: User Growth and AI Monetization Underestimated

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) ranks second-worst among the Magnificent Seven over the past decade, trailing only Tesla. The market’s pessimism was rooted in a reasonable thesis: social media toxicity would drive users away and crush valuations. It didn’t happen.

Instead, daily active users across Meta’s ecosystem – Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger – hit a record 3.54 billion in Q3 2025. More importantly, engagement and monetization are strengthening simultaneously. Average revenue per user (ARPU) climbed to $14.46 in Q3, up 18% year-over-year. The company is spending more than ever, yet profit margins remain stable, indicating disciplined capital allocation.

Artificial intelligence is the secret sauce. Meta’s AI-powered recommendation algorithms drove a 5% increase in Facebook time spent and 10% on Threads last quarter. Management is already laying groundwork for “superintelligence” systems that will further optimize content recommendations and monetization. Business-focused tools for WhatsApp and Messenger represent an underappreciated growth vector – users are already deeply engaged, so adding commerce functionality feels like a natural extension rather than a stretch.

Sell-side analysts largely agree, with a consensus price target of $838.79, implying 25% upside from current levels.

The Takeaway: Selective Accumulation in Overlooked Names

The 698% run from 2015-2024 has created a perception that the Magnificent Seven story is finished. But Amazon’s cloud dominance and Meta’s AI-monetization arc suggest otherwise. Both have stumbled relative to peers, creating windows for discerning investors to add exposure before the market fully reprices these narratives.