Picture supply: Getty Photos
For the FTSE 100, like anything, a brand new yr brings new alternatives. This was true in January 2025 when some unheralded shares turned out to have monster years – a couple of going up a number of occasions in worth.
What would be the Footsie large winners this yr? Which large names on the London Inventory Change may double in worth in 2026? I roped my outdated buddy ChatGPT in to assist me get the cogs whirring.
I requested: “Which FTSE 100 shares will surge in 2026? (Ideally, shares with an opportunity to double in worth or extra.)”
Right here was the reponse, separated by tiers:
“📉 Tier 3 — Upside Weighted with Security / Valuation Attraction” – AstraZeneca, GSK, Barclays
“📊 Tier 2 — Robust Upside however Extra Established” – HSBC, Rio Tinto, BP, Shell
“📈 Tier 1 — Highest Upside Potential (Speculative / Cyclical)” – Glencore, BAE Methods, Rolls–Royce
Probably the most hanging particulars of the shares chosen is how massive all of them are. There are 10 shares in ChatGPT’s record and they’re near being precisely the identical as the biggest FTSE 100 shares by market cap. The highest three of AstraZeneca (£211bn market cap), HSBC (£205bn), and Shell (£158bn) are all in there.
Why is that this an issue? As a result of massive blue-chip firms are typically mature. This implies they’ve been round some time and provide regular however steady development reasonably than being the shares that surge previous all others in any given yr.
That’s to not say AstraZeneca couldn’t surge in 2026. A brand new blockbuster drug or two may pop alongside to ship the share into orbit. Nevertheless it’s so much tougher to double up once we’re already coping with numbers within the a whole lot of billions.
A banner yr?
With all that stated, the primary spot on the record is occupied by Rolls-Royce (LSE: RR.) and I received’t be disagreeing with that. The share worth has been rocketing lately after success in its gross sales of engines for shopper and navy plane together with growing demand for different forms of energy techniques too.
As with all inventory that has been surging, it pays to have a look at the valuation. How a lot am I paying for a Rolls-Royce share in comparison with earnings? As Warren Buffett is fond of claiming: “Worth is what you pay however worth is what you get.”
The Rolls-Royce ahead price-to-earnings ratio stands at 36. That’s fairly excessive in comparison with the FTSE 100 common of 19. Whereas an elevated P/E ratio does recommend buyers just like the look of a inventory’s long run prospects, it means loads of future development is already baked into the worth you might be paying.
For Rolls-Royce to surge subsequent yr seems unlikely now – a double would take it to greatest Footsie agency by market cap – however there have been loads of naysayers at the beginning of 2025 too and look how that turned out. I’d name the inventory price contemplating.
