U.S. equity markets served up a risk‑on cocktail today, with high‑octane growth and turnaround stories topping the leaderboard of price gainers. From quantum computing to buy‑now‑pay‑later, investors rediscovered their taste for future earnings—preferably delivered with triple‑digit growth rates and a side of guidance upgrades.
Below, we break down the top 10 gainers, why they surged, and what today’s moves may signal for market sentiment and SEO‑worthy stock‑picking themes.
1. Sezzle Inc. (SEZL): Buy Now, Rally Now
Sezzle sprinted more than 35% higher to roughly 85 dollars, putting the buy‑now‑pay‑later player at the top of today’s U.S. gainers list. The move followed a Q4 report that topped earnings expectations and showcased strong revenue growth, underscoring that Sezzle’s business model can generate real cash, not just clever checkout buttons.
Management’s 2026 EPS guidance, paired with expectations for mid‑20s to high‑20s percentage revenue growth, helped convince investors that Sezzle’s profitability is no longer a deferred payment. While some on the Street still preach valuation caution, today’s price action signals that the market is rewarding scale, operating leverage and disciplined credit risk in fintech.
2. LeMaitre Vascular (LMAT): Medtech Gets Its Pulse Back
LeMaitre Vascular jumped more than 20% as investors warmed to the company’s focused vascular surgery portfolio and consistent profitability. Coming off a relatively flat 52‑week performance, the stock’s sudden strength suggests that even steady medtech names can enjoy a rerating when growth visibility improves.
With a premium earnings multiple reflecting investor confidence in recurring procedure demand and product innovation, LeMaitre now sits in that rarefied category of defensive growth: boring enough to hold through volatility, but dynamic enough to justify a higher bar. In a healthcare tape often dominated by drug‑pricing headlines, quiet execution is having a loud day.
3. First Advantage (FA): Background Checks, Forward Returns
First Advantage, a technology‑enabled background‑screening company, rallied more than 20% as traders bet on a cyclical and structural rebound in hiring and verification activity. The stock had been under pressure over the past year, leaving sentiment subdued and expectations modest.
Today’s move looks like an early vote that revenue growth could be turning a corner as employers lean into digital identity, compliance and risk management. For investors, the thesis is straightforward: as long as companies keep hiring—and regulators keep caring—background checks are not going out of style.
4. IonQ (IONQ): Quantum Computing Steps Out of Theory
IonQ surged roughly 20% after delivering a blockbuster quarter and a bold multi‑year revenue outlook. The company posted eye‑catching year‑over‑year revenue growth and raised its forecasts, signaling that commercial quantum computing demand is moving beyond pilot projects.
Management’s guidance for sharply higher revenue over the next couple of years has forced the market to rethink IonQ’s timeline from speculative moonshot to emerging platform. With a sizable cash position and expanding partnerships, the company is staking a claim as one of the few pure‑play ways to express a view on quantum’s real‑world future—and today, investors were happy to superposition their risk appetite.
5. Hudson Pacific Properties (HPP): Real Estate Finds a Plot Twist
Hudson Pacific Properties, a REIT tied to office and studio assets, climbed more than 20% despite a bruising 52‑week track record that still shows the shares deeply in the red. After a year of punishing downdrafts driven by office‑sector anxiety and higher rates, even a modest hint of stabilization can spark a sharp move.
Today’s rally likely reflects a mix of bargain hunting and short covering, as traders wager that “peak pessimism” might be in the rearview mirror. This is not yet a clean growth story; it is a narrative about survivability, balance‑sheet endurance and the notion that, eventually, humans might spend slightly more time in offices than on video calls.
6. Caesars Entertainment (CZR): The House Wins Today
Caesars Entertainment rallied close to 20%, giving casino and digital‑gaming bulls something to cheer after a difficult year for the stock. Despite the bounce, the shares remain down substantially over the past 12 months, reflecting ongoing concerns about leverage, consumer spending and competitive intensity in both physical and online gaming.
The market’s enthusiasm today hints at rising confidence that cost controls, disciplined capital allocation and a normalization in travel and leisure could support better cash generation. In an age of subscription fatigue, casinos remain one of the few experiences where customers willingly opt into variable pricing—and investors, at least today, like those odds.
7. Warby Parker (WRBY): Vision Correction, Multiple Expansion
Warby Parker advanced nearly 20% as investors applauded improving execution at the digitally native eyewear brand, which continues to lean into an omnichannel strategy. Trading volume spiked well above its three‑month average, a sign that today’s rally drew broad engagement from both institutions and retail traders.
Although the stock remains modestly negative over the past year, the latest move suggests growing belief that the company can blend store expansion, digital reach and operational efficiency into a path toward more robust earnings. With a still‑lofty valuation built on brand equity and data‑driven customer acquisition, Warby Parker is trying to prove that fashionable frames and financial discipline can, in fact, coexist.
8. Enerflex Ltd. (EFXT): Energy Infrastructure Turns Up the Pressure
Enerflex rose close to 17%, extending an already powerful 12‑month run that has seen the stock more than double. The company’s focus on energy infrastructure and natural‑gas compression has positioned it squarely in the sweet spot of energy security, reliability and transition narratives.
Investors appear to be rewarding visibility into projects and cash flows in a segment that benefits from both traditional hydrocarbons and cleaner‑burning gas. Trading at a reasonable earnings multiple after such a move, Enerflex has become a case study in how “picks and shovels” plays can outperform the commodity producers they quietly serve.
9. Frontdoor (FTDR): Home Warranties, Market Applause
Frontdoor climbed almost 17% as the home‑services and warranty provider continued its steady ascent. The company has already delivered a solid year of gains, and today’s action adds momentum to a story built around recurring revenue, data and scale in home maintenance.
As homeowners face aging housing stock, rising labor costs and expensive repairs, shifting surprise expenses into a predictable plan has intuitive appeal. Investors, for their part, seem to appreciate the combination of subscription‑like revenue, improving margins and a business model that does well when water heaters, HVAC units and budgets all feel stretched.
10. PENN Entertainment (PENN): Betting on a Rebound
PENN Entertainment rounded out the top‑gainers list with a sharp advance that continues the stock’s tradition of headline‑driven volatility. After a challenging stretch marked by questions over digital wagering economics, marketing spend and strategic partnerships, the bar for good news had dropped meaningfully.
Today’s rally reflects a market willing to re‑examine the story if management can show a clearer path to sustainable profitability and capital discipline. The investment case is not about perfection; it is about simply being better than the deeply discounted expectations baked into the shares. On Wall Street, sometimes the biggest win is just beating the spread.
A Day That Rewarded Narrative and Numbers
Taken together, today’s top gainers illustrate a market ready to reward companies that offer both compelling narratives and improving numbers. On one side sit high‑growth names like Sezzle and IonQ, which paired upside surprises with confident forward guidance; on the other, early‑stage rebounds in real estate, gaming and services, where investors see mispriced optionality.
For stock pickers and SEO‑hungry headline writers alike, three threads stand out: visible growth with upgraded guidance, selective risk‑taking in beaten‑down sectors and durable demand in infrastructure‑ and service‑oriented models. Hope is not a strategy—but on a day when quantums, casinos and compressors all rallied in unison, it certainly helped the tape look a little more optimistic.
The Sources
- Yahoo Finance – Top Stock Gainers Today
https://finance.yahoo.com/research-hub/screener/day_gainers/ - Yahoo Finance – February 2026 Insider Favorites For Growth Stocks
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/february-2026-insider-favorites-growth-113543794.html - Yahoo Finance – Sezzle Inc (SEZL) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Highlights
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/sezzle-inc-sezl-q4-2025-050201089.html - GlobeNewswire – Sezzle Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2025 Results
https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/02/25/3244959/0/en/sezzle-reports-fourth-quarter-and-fiscal-year-2025-results.html - Zacks – Sezzle Inc. (SEZL) Q4 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2875451/sezzle-inc-sezl-q4-earnings-and-revenues-top-estimates - MarketBeat – Sezzle Q4 Earnings Call Highlights
https://www.marketbeat.com/instant-alerts/sezzle-q4-earnings-call-highlights-2026-02-26/ - Investing.com – Sezzle Q4 2025 Slides: 32% Revenue Growth, Margins Expand to 45%
https://ng.investing.com/news/company-news/sezzle-q4-2025-slides-32-revenue-growth-margins-expand-to-45-93CH-2360610 - Public.com – Sezzle Inc (SEZL) Earnings
https://public.com/stocks/sezl/earnings - Intellectia – IonQ Shares Surge on Strong Revenue Forecast Exceeding Expectations
https://intellectia.ai/news/stock/ionq-shares-surge-on-strong-revenue-forecast-exceeding-expectations - Benzinga – IonQ Posts Strong Q4, Guides To 81% Revenue Growth In 2026
https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-stock-ratings/analyst-color/26/02/50900159/ionq-posts-strong-q4-guides-to-81-revenue-growth-in-2026 - Zacks – IonQ Stock Up on Q4 Earnings & Revenue Beat, Gross Margin Down
https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2876009/ionq-stock-up-on-q4-earnings-revenue-beat-gross-margin-down - GuruFocus – Sezzle (SEZL) Surges on Strong Q4 Earnings and Raised Guidance
https://www.gurufocus.com/news/8653228/sezzle-sezl-surges-on-strong-q4-earnings-and-raised-guidance - MLQ – IonQ Exceeds Earnings Forecasts With Strong Q4 Revenue Surge
https://mlq.ai/news/ionq-exceeds-earnings-forecasts-with-strong-q4-revenue-surge/
