Wall Street Analysts Flag Momentum Picks and Mixed Signals Across S&P 500 Stocks Heading Into September

As investors looked for direction heading into September 2026, a cluster of analyst notes and stock screens pointed to selective opportunities and cautionary cases across several market segments. Zacks flagged Oscar Health (OSCR), Liquidity Services (LQDT), and GEO Group (GEO) as top-ranked momentum stocks earning a Strong Buy designation on September 2. Meanwhile, Wall Street analysts were rated bullish on both Wingstop (WING) and PPL Corporation (PPL), though the Wingstop assessment came with the caveat that brokerage recommendations tend to skew optimistic and may not reliably predict returns.

On the bearish side, an analysis of BuzzFeed (BZFD) concluded that the company's turnaround math does not work, casting doubt on any recovery thesis for the struggling digital media firm. A separate screen of mid- to mega-cap healthcare stocks highlighted which names carried the heaviest and lightest short interest at the end of August, a metric closely watched for potential squeeze setups or sustained bearish conviction.

Among large-cap names, Netflix, MercadoLibre, and Tesla were all noted to be underperforming the S&P 500, with one analyst identifying a single name among the three as worth buying in September. A companion piece examined two S&P 500 stocks seen as holding durable competitive advantages alongside one that analysts considered disappointing on that measure.