Which Are the Most Expensive Stocks?
The Top-Priced Stocks of 2017
Can you afford to buy a single company share that is priced in the six-digit range? The 2017 list of the 10 highest-priced stocks includes just one share with a six-figure price tag. The remaining nine include three issues with four-digit prices and six issues with triple-digit share prices.
As for the companies’ locations, California and Virginia can take pride in each hosting two companies among the top-priced stocks of 2017. Nebraska, Kansas, and Colorado—the three states that share borders in central U.S.—have companies that occupy the first, second, and last places in the list.
It’s important to note that the most expensive stocks are all growth stocks that yield no dividend.
10. Cable One Inc (NYSE:CABO)
Share Price: $581.55
Cable One Inc provides diversified communication services in the United States. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, the company serves both commercial and residential customers. CABO stock hasn’t been around for a long time. It debuted on the market in mid-2015, making it the newest company on the list of the top-priced stocks of 2017. Since the initial public offering (IPO), CABO stock has increased by roughly 50%.
9. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG)
Share Price: $717.66
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. is the maker of the “da Vinci” robotic surgery system, which allows surgery to be performed using robotic manipulators. After booming throughout the 2000s, the California-based company started lagging behind estimates starting in 2013, and its revenue and profit growth turned negative. ISRG stock looks to be turning around now; over the last year, the stock price has increased over 50%.
8. AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)
Share Price: $760.45
AutoZone, Inc. is the biggest auto parts retailer in the United States. Founded in 1979 and based in Memphis, Tennessee, AutoZone has more than 5,500 stores across the U.S., Mexico, and Brazil. AZO stock has shown stellar returns since the stock market crash of 2009. If you bought AZO stock in 2009, it was selling at around $100.00. Now it trades 660% higher. This makes AutoZone one of the best performing top-priced stocks.
7. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Share Price: $806.13
Alphabet Inc, the parent company of Google, is the most valuable company in the list of the top 10 most expensive stocks, with a market capitalization of $541.0 billion. In February of 2016, Alphabet Inc surpassed Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as the world’s most valuable company, but lost that title later on. Robust sales of online ads on the “Google” web site and tighter cost control helped the California-based company report strong results in the most recent quarter. GOOG stock has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 30, and the company has also stepped into the smartphone market.
6. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Share Price: $841.76
AMZN stock has a P/E ratio of 207, making it the most expensive stock on the list by this metric. It is also one of the best-performing stocks this year, with a gain of more than 53% over the last year. Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, this company is questioning the brick-and-mortar business model among retailers and making solid strides to gain a bigger market share.
5. Markel Corporation (NYSE:MKL)
Share Price: $925.91
Markel Corporation is a seller of property-casualty insurance coverage. It was founded in 1930, and its headquarters lie in Richmond, Virginia. The company was listed on the NASDAQ exchange in 1986 with an IPO of $8.33 per share. MKL stock has grown 105 times since then. Over the last year, MKL stock has generated a return of roughly 14.50%.
4. Priceline Group Inc (NASDAQ:PCLN)
Share Price: $1,497.94
Priceline Group Inc is the largest U.S. online travel agent, and it is headquartered in Connecticut. Its brands include “Booking.com,” “Kayak.com,” “Agoda.com,” “Rentalcars.com,” and “OpenTable.com.” It competes with Google, Apple, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), Amazon, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), and Expedia Inc (NASDAQ:EXPE). The company benefits from weak oil prices that have contributed to lower airline ticket prices, but it grapples with a strengthening U.S. dollar, which harms its overseas revenue.
3. NVR, Inc. (NYSE:NVR)
Share Price: $1,623.85
NVR, Inc. operates as a homebuilder in the United States. It constructs and sells single-family detached homes, townhomes, and condominium buildings. In addition to this, the Virginia-based company also operates a mortgage banking and title services business. NVR stock has more than doubled over the past five years and it is currently trending upwards, so it shouldn’t be a surprise if this trend continues in 2017.
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2. Seaboard Corp (NYSEMKT:SEB)
Share Price: $3,470.00
Seabord Corp is the second-most expensive stock in the list of the top 10 most expensive stock prices, but the Kansas-based conglomerate is the least valuable, with a $3.9-billion market capitalization. Seaboard is globally engaged with agribusiness and transportation, and it operates through several divisions: “Pork,” “Commodity Trading and Milling,” “Marine,”, “Sugar,” “Power,” “Turkey,” and “Other Businesses.” Combined, these divisions give this company a competitive edge. One could even call this company “recession-proof.”
1. Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A)
Share Price: $215,500.00
BRK.A stock has the only six-digit share price on this list, and it’s no wonder; it belongs to Berkshire Hathaway Inc., the company led by 86-year-old Warren Buffett, who’s the most successful investor in the world. BRK.A stock, however, has a P/E ratio of less than 14, making it the cheapest in the top-priced stocks club.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. It owns well-known companies like Kraft Heinz Co (NASDAQ:KHC) and has significant minority holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), The Coca-Cola Co (NYSE:KO), Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC), and International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM). BRK.A averaged an annual growth in book value of nearly 20% for the last half century, compared to nearly 10% from the S&P 500, with dividends included for the same period.
