The 5 Stocks That Are Driving the Dow

In the video below, Fool.com contributor Morgan Housel and Austin Smith discuss those stocks that are responsible for the Dow's 7.3% year-to-date gain. Five companies in particular stand out as major drivers: Home Depot (NYS: HD) , JP Morgan (NYS: JPM) , Travelers Insurance, Disney, and Wal-Mart. Of these five, Morgan looks at two in particular that stand out to him: Home Depot and JPMorgan.

Morgan believes Home Depot's run indicates that we are in fact at a true bottom in housing, while JPMorgan remains a sharply discounted stock in a cheap sector today.

While JPMorgan may have contributed to more Dow growth than Bank of America (NYS: BAC) , the latter may be a better investment today. Learn more about why in our in-depth company report on Bank of America. The report details Bank of America's prospects, including three reasons to buy and three reasons to sell. Just click here to get instant access.

The article The 5 Stocks That Are Driving the Dow originally appeared on Fool.com.

Austin Smith has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Fool contributor Morgan Housel owns shares of Wal-Mart Stores. The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend The Home Depot and Wal-Mart Stores. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2012 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.