The Top ETF of December & its Best-Performing Stocks

Themes Generative Artificial Intelligence ETF WISE, which provides exposure to the most promising generative AI tech stocks, has gained 17.6%, becoming the best-performing ETF of December.

Although most of the stocks in WISE’s portfolio delivered strong returns, a few have gained more than 30%. These include SoundHound Inc. SOUN, BigBear.ai BBAI, Broadcom AVGO, Tesla TSLA and QuickLogic Corporation QUIK.

The artificial intelligence (AI) boom is showing no signs of slowing down as we head into 2025. The expansion of AI applications holds the promise of ushering in fresh growth opportunities in the tech sector and beyond. The generative AI market is poised to explode at a CAGR of 42% to $1.3 trillion over the next 10 years from a market size of just $40 billion in 2022, according to a new report by Bloomberg Intelligence (BI).

Let’s delve into the key growth drivers and opportunities that will shape AI’s future.

Accelerated Adoption Across Sectors: The adoption of AI in various corners of the market is expanding at an unprecedented pace. Industries such as healthcare, retail and manufacturing are increasingly leveraging AI to streamline operations, improve decision-making and enhance customer experiences. In healthcare, AI-driven diagnostic tools are expected to reach broader adoption, reducing costs and improving patient outcomes. Meanwhile, retailers are turning to AI for hyper-personalized marketing and inventory management.

Advancements in Generative AI Generative: AI models like OpenAI’s GPT and DALL-E have demonstrated capabilities that go beyond text and image generation. In 2025, generative AI is expected to integrate deeper into creative industries, product design, and even coding, driving productivity and innovation across the board (read: 5 Most-Bought Stocks & ETFs of 2024: AI Rules).

Government and Corporate Investments: Governments around the world are increasing their investments in AI research and development. For instance, China and the United States are leading the charge with substantial funding aimed at maintaining competitive advantages. On the corporate front, companies like NVIDIA (NVDA), Alphabet (GOOGL), and Microsoft (MSFT) continue to pour billions into AI, signaling strong confidence in its long-term potential.

Growing Demand for AI Chips: The AI hardware market, particularly semiconductor chips designed for AI workloads, is set to experience exponential growth. With companies like NVIDIA dominating the market, investors are keenly watching developments in AI chip innovation, which underpins advancements in machine learning and neural networks.

Let us take a closer look at the fundamentals of WISE.

WISE in Focus

Themes Generative Artificial Intelligence ETF seeks to track the Solactive Generative Artificial Intelligence Index, which identifies companies that derive their revenues from AI, Data Analytics & Big Data, Natural Language Processing, or Artificial Intelligence-Driven Services. It holds 40 stocks in its basket, with a heavy concentration on the top firm at 13.2%. Other firms hold no more than 6.2% share.

Themes Generative Artificial Intelligence ETF has amassed $18.1 million in its asset base and charges 35 bps in annual fees. It trades in average daily volume of 7,000 shares.

Best-Performing Stocks of WISE

SoundHound is an innovator of conversational intelligence. It offers an independent voice AI platform, which enables businesses across industries to deliver conversational experiences. The stock has skyrocketed 207% in a month and accounts for a 13.2% share in the ETF. It has an estimated earnings growth of 30.9% for 2025.

SoundHound has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and a Momentum Score of A.

BigBear.ai is a provider of artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud-based big data analytics and cyber engineering solutions. The stock has jumped 107% in a month and accounts for a 6.18% share in WISE’s basket. It has an estimated earnings growth rate of 73.3% for 2025.

BigBear.ai currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and a Growth Score of B. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Broadcom is a premier designer, developer and global supplier of a broad range of semiconductor devices with a focus on complex digital and mixed signal complementary metal oxide semiconductor-based devices and analog III-V-based products. The stock has soared 53.6% and accounts for a 3.89% share in the ETF. Broadcom has an estimated earnings growth of 28.95% for the fiscal year (ending October 2025).

AVGO has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of B (read: Broadcom Hits $1T Market Cap: Are Broadcom ETFs the Next NVIDIA?)

Tesla has transformed the EV space like Amazon changed the retail landscape and Netflix revolutionized entertainment. The stock has surged 36.4% in a month and accounts for a 1.26% share in the ETF.

Tesla has an estimated earnings growth of 31.88% for 2025 and has a Zacks Rank #2.

QuickLogic is a semiconductor provider of ultra-low-power, comprehensive, flexible sensor processing solutions that enable significantly longer battery life for smartphones, wearables and IoT markets. The stock has gained 31.5% in a month and accounts for a 3.35% share in the ETF.

QuickLogic has an estimated earnings growth rate of 600% for 2025 but has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).