Retail investors talked up five hot stocks this week (Feb. 16 to Feb. 20) on X and Reddit's r/WallStreetBets, driven by retail hype, earnings, AI buzz, and corporate news flow.

Super Micro Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI), Hims & Hers Health Inc. (NYSE:HIMS), Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL), Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT), and Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT), spanning software, semiconductors, e-commerce, retail, private credit, AI, and cloud, reflected diverse investor interests.

Super Micro Computer

• SMCI saw a strong rebound in stock price during the week, driven by lingering momentum from its early-February blowout second-quarter earnings, which featured $12.68 billion in revenue and an upgraded full-year revenue guidance to at least $40 billion. A Fortune report on Feb 20 highlighted ongoing delays in hiring a permanent CFO (promised 14 months prior), but overall trader and analyst chatter focused on renewed AI enthusiasm.

• Some retail investors were so bullish on SMCI that they were jokingly contemplating betting all of their portfolio’s money on the stock for next few months.

• The stock had a 52-week range of $27.60 to $62.47, trading around $32 to $35 per share, as of the publication of this article. It fell 45.74% over the year and 24.52% over the last six months.

• SMCI had a weaker price trend in the long, short and medium terms, with a strong growth ranking, as per Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings.

Hims & Hers Health

• HIMS announced a major acquisition this week, entering a definitive agreement to acquire Australian-based digital health leader Eucalyptus in a deal valued at up to $1.15 billion, with ~$240 million in upfront cash, deferred payments, and earnouts tied to performance through early 2029. The move accelerates Hims & Hers’ international expansion, adding Eucalyptus’ strong presence in Australia, the UK, and Germany—plus emerging operations in Japan and Canada—while projecting $450 million in additional annualized revenue at triple-digit growth rates. –

• Fed retail investors believed that HIMS could break above the $20 mark.

• The stock had a 52-week range of $15.46 to $70.43, trading around $15 to $16 per share, as of the publication of this article. It declined by 76.18% over the year and 63.53% in the last six months.

• HIMS had a weaker price trend in the short, medium, and long term, with a poor value ranking as per Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings.

Blue Owl Capital

• OWL faced significant market pressure during this week, primarily from its announcement of a $1.4 billion sale of direct-lending assets across three BDCs—including $600 million from retail-focused Blue Owl Capital Corp II (OBDC II)—to institutional buyers like CalPERS, OMERS, BCI, and insurer Kuvare. Additionally, initial reports of permanently halting redemptions/liquidity in OBDC II sparked fears of illiquidity cracks in private credit, driving OWL shares down sharply.

• Retail investors also perceived the withdrawal limit as concerning.

• The stock had a 52-week range of $10.88 to $23.98, trading around $11 to $13 per share, as of the publication of this article. It declined 49.87% over the year and 37.64% in the last six months.

• Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings showed that OWL had a weaker price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid growth score.

Microsoft

• MSFT experienced continued downward pressure on its stock during the week, amid ongoing investor concerns over heavy AI-related capital expenditures, potential free cash flow sustainability risks, and a slight Azure growth deceleration post its late-January earnings beat. A positive highlight came on Feb 18 when director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares in the open market, signaling insider confidence amid the sell-off. Discussions also touched on the extended OpenAI revenue-sharing deal, about 20% through 2032, reinforcing long-term AI upside. –

• Retail sentiment was seen turning sour on MSFT.

• The stock had a 52-week range of $344.79 to $555.45, trading around $398 to $400 per share, as of the publication of this article. It was up down 4.25% over the year and 21.21% over the last six months.

• MSFT maintains a weaker price trend over the long, short, and medium terms, with a solid quality score, as per Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings.

Walmart

• WMT delivered its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings on Feb. 19. The retailer reported strong holiday-quarter results with revenue of $190.66 billion, adjusted EPS of $0.74, U.S. same-store sales rising 4.6%, and online sales surging 27% for its 15th straight quarter of double-digit e-commerce growth—driven by lower prices, speedy delivery, grocery dominance, advertising gains, and third-party marketplace strength. However, the outlook disappointed: 2027 net sales guidance of 3.5–4.5% growth and adjusted EPS of $2.75–$2.85 fell short of Wall Street’s ~5% sales and $2.96 EPS expectations.

• Some retail investors believed that WMT’s decline would lead the rotation back into tech stocks.

• The stock had a 52-week range of $79.85 to $134.69, trading around $124 to $125 per share, as of the publication of this article. It returned 28.45% over the year and 28.45% over the last six months.

• According to Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings, WMT was maintaining a stronger price trend over short, medium, and long terms, with a solid quality ranking.

Retail focus blended meme-driven narrative with earnings outlook and corporate news flow, as the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq witnessed negative market action during the week.

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock.

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