Hot or Not, Stock Market Edition: 05/22/2026

Happy Friday. Here’s what our Zen Ratings reveal about what’s hot and what’s not in the market:

• Hot: Communication equipment maker Zebra Technologies (ZBRA) just crushed earnings and operates at the center of 2 hot trends; internet content player StubHub Holdings (STUB) is making all the right moves 
• Not: Is entertainment giant Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS) fumbling the ball? Plus, IT services provider Nayax (NYAX) feels industry pressure

P.S. For more stocks making moves, check out our Zen Ratings Upgrades & Downgrades screener.

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🔥 HOT: Ticketing powerhouse StubHub Holdings (STUB) is starting to look like a comeback story with legs. The biggest catalyst right now? Improving profitability as live events remain incredibly resilient. Concerts, sports, and premium live experiences continue drawing strong consumer demand, and StubHub is benefiting as ticket resale activity stays elevated. That strength showed up clearly in the latest quarter, where the company delivered an earnings beat and meaningful operational improvement — exactly the kind of shift investors wanted to see from a business long viewed as inconsistent. Wall Street is taking notice too, with several analysts recently upgrading the stock to Buy, signaling growing confidence that the turnaround may still be in its early stages. In the Zen Ratings, STUB holds a high-tier Zen Rating (Buy), powered by an A in Growth and strong support from Financials and Sentiment. All said? This looks like a classic reopening-era winner evolving into a more durable platform story — and if live event demand stays strong, StubHub may still have meaningful upside ahead. 

🥶 NOT: Fintech payment platform Nayax (NYAX) is starting to lose momentum. The biggest issue is valuation versus growth expectations. Nayax operates in an interesting niche — powering cashless payments and connected commerce for unattended retail machines — but investors are increasingly questioning how much future growth is already priced into the stock. Recent analyst commentary has basically boiled down to: “good company, but not much room for error.” That’s a dangerous setup in a market where investors are becoming far more selective with tech and fintech names. On top of that, the broader IT services sector has been one of the weakest-performing industry groups lately, which creates another headwind for sentiment and momentum. According to WallStreetZen, NYAX now carries a D (Sell) rating, dragged down by weak Sentiment and Value scores. The bottom line? Nayax may still have a solid long-term business — but right now, the stock looks stuck between slowing enthusiasm and a valuation that already assumes a lot of success.

🔥 HOT: Communication equipment maker Zebra Technologies (ZBRA) is quietly emerging as a powerhouse — yet few investors even know the company exists, and the stock has been fairly flat in recent months. That is despite the fact that they recently delivered a strong beat on both revenue and earnings, then followed it up by raising full-year guidance and accelerating share buybacks — a combination that indicates bigtime management confidence. More importantly, Zebra sits right at the center of two massive trends: warehouse automation and AI-driven logistics efficiency. As companies modernize supply chains and distribution centers, demand for Zebra’s scanners, tracking systems, and workflow automation tools continues to grow. The stock also recently reclaimed its 200-day moving average, a bullish technical signal that often attracts institutional momentum buyers. In the Zen Ratings, ZBRA holds a high-tier Zen Rating (B or Buy), supported by Component Grades for Safety, Sentiment, and Value. It also earns a high grade from our AI Factor, which sifts through mountains of data to detect subtle patterns that could lead to stock outperformance. All said, ZBRA looks like a classic “hidden infrastructure” AI play — not flashy like the chipmakers, but deeply tied to the real-world automation boom that’s still gaining momentum. (Looking for more under-the-radar picks in the AI sphere? Watch this.)

🥶 NOT: Entertainment giant Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS) is fumbling the play . What's going on? Despite some positive news around a proposed spin-off of the Rangers business from the Knicks and analyst price target increases, the stock has experienced some volatility in recent weeks, which could suggest investor concerns are outweighing optimism. Within the F-rated Entertainment industry, MSGS currently ranks 28th out of 35 industries — one of the lowest-rated stocks in one of the lowest-rated industries. On top of that, the stock itself was recently downgraded to a Zen Rating of D (Sell). Its Component Grades are average or weak in most areas, including disappointing Ds for Sentiment and Value. The bottom line? While the spin-off could unlock value down the road, the sharp decline and weak ratings suggest better places (like these stocks) to park your money for now. 

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