STOCKS — 14 October 2026
Companion to STOCKS Episode Seven, "The Bigger Board"
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THE BOARD
The board got a lot bigger this week: we're now tracking 366 companies, up from 205, as new names are added in batches leg by leg. That's housekeeping, not a market move, so this week's totals are the new baseline rather than a like-for-like comparison with last week. Twenty-one names are at or near their own recorded high, against nine last week. Earth leads by some distance with nine, up from two. Digital has five, up from four — but underneath that count, it has nearly completely turned over. Money has two, up from one; Build has three, up from two; Health and Yield each have one, both up from zero; Need and Want remain at zero, as they have every week so far. Six of the eight legs are now represented, the widest spread since this series began, up from four last week. Average distance from high across the whole board is 68.7%, down from 71.6% a week ago — with so many of the 161 new names not yet sitting near their own highs, that's the bigger, younger roster doing what a bigger, younger roster does, not a weaker market underneath it.
EARTH — PHYSICALLY SCARCE RESOURCES
Nine at or near high, up from two. Chevron, ExxonMobil, HF Sinclair, Marathon Petroleum and Par Pacific all sit at exactly 100%. Marathon Petroleum held this spot last week too; Chevron and ExxonMobil are newly on the board.
BUILD — THINGS WE MAKE AND CONSTRUCT
Three at or near high, up from two. Atlas Copco, Diploma and Porvair all sit at 100%, all new to this leg's top five. Smiths Group and IMI, who led it last week above their own highs, have eased back to 96.5% and 97.2% — just under the line now.
NEED — THINGS WE CANNOT DO WITHOUT
Still none. Coca-Cola leads at 98.9%, just short of the line, ahead of Lotus Bakeries (98.8%), Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (97.6%), Premier Foods (92.8%) and Altria (92.6%).
WANT — THINGS WE CHOOSE TO BUY
Still none. General Motors and Hilton Hotels share the lead at 94.5%, just ahead of NEXT (94.0%), InterContinental Hotels (92.5%) and Inditex (92.3%).
HEALTH — KEEPING US ALIVE AND WELL
One at or near high, up from zero: AbbVie, crossing back over the line at 99.2%. Thermo Fisher follows just underneath at 98.2%, then McKesson (97.4%), Agilent (95.7%) and Gilead (95.4%).
MONEY — THE PLUMBING OF CAPITAL
Two at or near high, up from one. Beazley is the new leader at 100%, joined by F&C Investment Trust at 99.5%. Hiscox (97.4%) and Itau Unibanco (97.3%) follow; Itau led this leg last week above 104% and has eased back but remains strong.
DIGITAL — INFORMATION, SOFTWARE AND NETWORKS
The real story this week. Last week's three leaders — Cloudflare, NVIDIA and Advanced Micro Devices — have all slipped back below the line, and none of them are in this week's top five. In their place: Apple, Microsoft and Shopify, all at exactly 100%, Palantir close behind at 99.8%, and a new name on the board, Eleco, also at 100% and setting a fresh high this week. The count held at five, up from four, but the names underneath it have almost completely turned over. The leg's average across all 46 names is 67.2%, still well below the 80% line.
YIELD — REAL ESTATE AND INFRASTRUCTURE
One at or near high, up from zero: United Utilities, crossing the line at exactly 100%, having sat just short of it last week. Severn Trent (95.5%), Equinix (91.9%), SSE (91.3%) and Welltower (91.3%) follow.
WHAT TO WATCH
Whether the breadth widening to six of eight legs holds as the board keeps growing, and whether Digital's new top five — Apple, Microsoft, Shopify, Palantir and Eleco — stays in place next week, or turns over again as quickly as it did this week.
Figures are each company’s latest price as a percentage of its recorded high, as of 14 October 2026. Descriptive only — no forecasts. Full register: moneyspider.net/micro.