Wells Fargo says own YOLO stocks ahead of an expected rush of buying from retail traders

• Wells Fargo expects increased retail trader buying and recommends owning YOLO stocks.
• The analysts cite liquidity indicators, increased savings, and tax refunds as fuel for retail buying.
• Constellation Energy, Carvana, and Broadcom are some of the stocks on Wells Fargo's YOLO list.

The YOLO trade is back.

Wells Fargo said investors should expect an uptick in retail buying, telling clients to own speculative stocks that could draw the day-trader crowd.

Wells Fargo's liquidity indicator flashed a buy signal in April, which the analysts say translates to retail investor speculation and, in turn, more buying.

"Liquidity drives speculation, and especially with the extra cash from OBBB tax returns, we expect retail speculation to pick up," the analysts wrote, adding investors should "own YOLO."

Retail traders have become known for their "buy the dip, sell the rip" strategy, but they've deviated from the usual playbook during the war in Iran.

They bought into the Iran war relief rally that sent the S&P 500 to fresh record highs last week, but they weren't buying the dip when the market was near correct territory earlier in the conflict.

Wells Fargo expects a shift toward retail trader buying, citing increased savings, improving headlines, and tax refunds from Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Wells Fargo maintains a YOLO basket made up of retail traders' favorite stocks. The group includes AI-adjacent energy play, Constellation Energy, along with more explicit AI trades like Meta Platform and Broadcom.

There are also more speculative names on the list, like quantum computing stocks IonQ and D-Wave Quantum. And while GameStop and AMC are absent, the group includes some classic meme stocks like Carvana in the YOLO basket.