Morgan Stanley Sees the S&P 500 Hitting 8,300 – 2 Stocks It Says Could Surge Alongside It

The earnings season is winding down, and Wall Street has reasons to stay optimistic. Corporate America continues delivering resilient results, with S&P 500 companies on track for a sixth straight quarter of double-digit earnings growth, helping fuel an 18% rebound in the benchmark index from its late-March low.

Mike Wilson, the chief US equity strategist at Morgan Stanley, is describing current conditions as a ‘rolling recovery,’ a turnaround from the ‘rolling recession’ of a year ago, when the combination of President Trump’s tariff and DOGE policies injected turmoil into the markets. Those changes are baked in now, and the economy is proving resilient even in the face of the military campaign in Iran.

The upshot is that, in Wilson’s view, we’re likely to see continued gains in the S&P 500 through the second half of this year. With the benchmark index currently standing at 7,444, he believes it is time to raise his price target to 8,300, implying about 11% gain.

“As we look out over the next 6–12 months, we remain constructive on US equities, with our base case calling for the S&P 500 to reach 8,300 assuming a continuation of the current earnings strength as the main driver of index level upside. The path to that target may not be smooth, but the direction of travel, in our view, is higher. In other words, investors should be prepared to take advantage of pullbacks/choppiness along the way as opportunities to add length not only in the index but to areas of the market that have not yet reflected the strength in earnings,” Wilson explained.

Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley analysts are picking out the stocks that could surge alongside a strong S&P index. We’ve opened up the TipRanks database to look up the details on two of those picks. Let’s dive in.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical (BMRN)

The first Morgan Stanley pick we’re looking at is BioMarin, a commercial and clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in California. BioMarin is focused on the treatment of genetic diseases, and through its demonstrated expertise in both genetics and molecular biology, the company is working to produce a line of targeted therapies that address the underlying causes of selected diseases.

The company currently has 10 medications on the commercial market, a large and marketable set of assets. These commercial-stage medications include Naglazyme, for the treatment of the progressive wasting condition Maroteaux-Lamy syndrome; Roctavian, which controls bleeding in adults suffering from severe hemophilia A; and Vimizin, a treatment for the genetic enzyme disorder Morquio A. BioMarin has a presence in 80 countries around the world, and through its commercial drug lines, it generated $3.22 billion in total revenues during fiscal year 2025.

BioMarin’s leading product is Voxzogo, a drug used in the treatment of children suffering from achondroplasia with open growth plates. The drug encourages bone growth in these patients. BioMarin generated $220 million in revenue from the drug during 1Q26, more than from any other drug in its product line.

In another important update, the company in April of this year completed its acquisition of Amicus in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.8 billion. The move brings the approved drugs Galafold and Pombiliti + Opfolda into BioMarin’s portfolio; in the year before the acquisition was announced, the two therapies generated a combined $599 million in revenue. The acquisition also gives BioMarin the U.S. commercialization rights to DMX-200, an investigational small-molecule treatment being developed for the kidney disease focal segmental glomerulosclerosis.

The company reported $766 million in total revenue for 1Q26, a figure that was up 3% year-over-year and beat the forecast by $14.53 million. At the bottom line, BioMarin is profitable and realized a non-GAAP EPS of 76 cents in the quarter. However, this was down 33% year-over-year and missed the forecast by 15 cents per share.

Morgan Stanley’s 5-star analyst Sean Laaman has an upbeat view of BioMarin, based on the strength of its leading product and its recent acquisition move.

“BioMarin is at an inflection point. What has historically been a ‘single‑franchise’ debate centered on VOXZOGO durability is increasingly becoming a scaled, multi‑asset rare‑disease platform with improving visibility on revenue breadth, cash generation, and strategic optionality. The core of the thesis is that the Amicus acquisition meaningfully changes the consequence set of any VOXZOGO share‑loss scenario by adding two marketed, high‑growth rare‑metabolic products that fit BioMarin’s existing specialist call‑point and global infrastructure. In our framework, that diversification is the key to re‑rating: investors get a company with long‑duration rare‑disease cash flows and a clearer path to sustained growth through the decade, rather than a stock that trades as a binary ‘VOXZOGO vs competition’ referendum,” Laaman commented.

To this end, Laaman puts an Overweight (i.e., Buy) rating on BMRN shares, along with a $119 price target that suggests a one-year upside of 123%. (To watch Laaman’s track record, click here)

Overall, BioMarin’s 18 recent analyst reviews break down to 13 Buys and 5 Holds, for a Moderate Buy consensus rating. The stock is priced at $53.24, and its $89.31 average target price implies an upside of ~68% for the year ahead. (See BMRN stock forecast)

Arxis, Inc. (ARXS)

For the second Morgan Stanley pick, we’ll look at a holding company in the defense industry. Arxis, through its subsidiaries, works on producing electronic and mechanical components used in several industrial markets – especially in aerospace and defense. The company’s subsidiaries are engineering and manufacturing firms, with their hands in a wide range of mission-critical systems that enable high performance, reliability, and technological integration.

Arxis works with both commercial and governmental customers. The company’s production side partners with OEMs to make sure that all components meet specifications and can perform across air, land, sea, and space environments. Tier-1 suppliers depend on Arxis companies for the parts and subsystems needed to support production, modernize fleets, and bring aircraft programs into the next generation.

This company is new to the public markets – it held its IPO last month. In that event, Arxis’ stock entered the market at an offering price of $28 per share; the company made 40,500,000 shares available. The stock entered the market on April 16, and the sale brought in $1.134 billion in gross proceeds. Arxis currently boasts a market cap of $14.8 billion.

This defense-related company has picked up some serious analyst attention since going public, including catching the eye of Morgan Stanley’s 5-star analyst Kristine Liwag.

Liwag likes the firm’s diverse holdings, and says of it, “Arxis provides broad-based exposure to positive tailwinds in defense & space, commercial aerospace, and specialized industrial technology. The company’s significant diversification means that it has limited exposure to platform-specific risk and is able to benefit from broad-based trends across its end-markets. In defense, Arxis is poised to benefit from growing U.S. and global defense budgets… In commercial aerospace, Arxis has significant original equipment (OE) exposure… In industrial technology, Arxis is exposed to demographic growth trends in the medical technology industry as well as robotics and automation trends, including from its exposure to semiconductors.”

Looking ahead, Liwat rates ARXS shares as Overweight (i.e., Buy), and sets a $44 price target that indicates room for an upside of 24% by this time next year. (To watch Liwag’s track record, click here)

All in all, the 10 analyst reviews on file for ARXS include 9 Buys and 1 Hold, for a Strong Buy consensus rating. The shares are currently trading at $36.10, and the average target price, at $44.44, implies that the stock will gain 23% on the one-year horizon. (See ARXS stock forecast)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.