Just 8 Stocks Control A Third Of The S&P 500's Cash — And Counting

The massive investments S&P 500 companies are plowing into AI don’t seem to be making much of a dent in their surging piles of cash.

Just eight S&P 500 stocks, including Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon.com (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT), hold a third of all the cash and short-term investments held by all S&P 500 companies, based on just-released 2025 numbers from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSurge.

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What’s more — despite multi-billion dollar outlays on AI infrastructure — cash continues to pile up rapidly at each of these companies. This data shows that while some investors might worry about the heavy spending on AI, these companies are in the enviable position to do it.

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“As a result of the hyperscalers’ continued jockeying for dominance in the intensifying AI race, combined capital expenditures (capex) from the five firms are expected to exceed a staggering $600 billion in 2026, predominantly earmarked for data centers and the necessary tools to operate them,” said Jeff Buchbinder, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial.

Alphabet’s Huge Cash Mound Surges

Google parent Alphabet continues to prove just how profitable collecting data on the world’s internet users is.

The company saw its cash and short-term investments jump 33% to $126.8 billion at the end of 2025 from the previous year. Now, Alphabet single-handedly controls 7.2% of the roughly $1.7 trillion in cash held by non-financial companies in the S&P 500.

But its stock is lagging this year despite its abundance of riches. Shares of Alphabet are down 3.3% this year, compared to a less than 1% fall by the S&P 500. The company’s RS Rating, though, continues to be a strong 90 because it did so well in 2025. Additionally, analysts are calling for 23% earnings growth in 2026 and another 17% in 2027.

Cash continues to surge at Amazon.com and Microsoft, too. Amazon.com now holds cash of $123 billion, up nearly 22%. Its stock, too, is down 11.6% this year. And its RS Rating has since crumbled to 25. Analysts think profit will rise 8% in 2026 and 21% in 2027.

And over at Microsoft, cash and short-term investments rose 25% to $89.5 billion. This single company owns 5.1% of the S&P 500’s total cash. Shares are down a painful 17.9% this year, pushing the RS Rating down to 19.

Not Just AI Kings

It’s not only the tech giants amassing such huge amounts of cash.

Automaker Tesla (TSLA) saw its cash and short-term investment jump 20% to $44 billion. That’s up 20.5% from 2024. And Indianapolis health insurer Elevance Health (ELV) is sitting on $36.1 billion in cash and short-term investments.

But generally, cash accumulation is a “problem” for technology companies. Investors are understandably concerned whether huge cash outlays on AI will pay off. But one thing’s for sure: They can afford it.

Largest Cash Piles In S&P 500

Based on 2024 cash and short-term investments

Source:  S&P Global Market Intelligence

Follow Matt Krantz on X @mattkrantz

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