7 Stocks Changing the World—and Making Investors Wealthy

Water scarcity is an issue that's hard to ignore. Xylem Inc. (NYSE: XYL) is at the forefront of addressing two urgent sustainability concerns: responsible stewardship of shared water resources and helping communities become resilient in the face of climate change.   

Xylem’s portfolio encompasses four business units, none of which accounts for more than 30% of its revenue: Measurement and Control Solutions, Water Infrastructure, Applied Water, and Water Solutions and Services, which it says address “the full lifecycle of water.” The company projects single-digit organic revenue growth in each category in 2025. 

Xylem generated over $8 billion in revenue in 2024 and has been growing that revenue at an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 10% over the last five years. 

Xylem also prioritizes shareholder value through dividends and share buybacks. In 2024, the company raised its dividend by 1.1% and paid dividends of $350 million, up 17.1% year-over-year. During the year, it also bought back $20 million of its shares.   

When investors look at Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), it’s important for them to put aside their personal feelings for Elon Musk. And if they can, the stock’s prospects look far more favorable.  

Yes, Tesla is losing EV market share in China and Europe. But it’s worth remembering that the EV market wouldn’t be what it is today without Tesla. The company didn’t invent electric vehicles, but it did make them mainstream—paving the way for a global shift away from fossil fuels and toward cleaner transportation.

And Tesla is not sitting on its lead. It has ambitious plans for autonomous driving via its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, which incorporates AI and machine learning into its vision-first approach that believes autonomous vehicles should navigate and see the world like humans.  

Plus, Tesla is more than a car company. For example, it is heavily involved in energy storage, solar technology, and robotics. At this time, these segments may not account for much of the company’s approximately $100 billion in annual revenue, but they speak to a bigger mission: accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy. 

At first glance, NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE: NEE) is a somewhat boring utility stock, even if it’s the largest utility holding company in the United States. However, there’s a reason the company has been recognized as one of Forbes's Most Admired Companies.  

That has to do with the company’s commitment to renewable energy. NextEra Energy is the nation’s largest producer of wind and solar energy, and also owns and operates seven nuclear power plants.

And NextEra is practicing what it preaches, having spent over $50 billion in an effort to achieve real zero (as opposed to net-zero) emissions by 2045.  

In the past five years, NEE stock has delivered a total return of over 51%, including a dividend with a yield of over 3%. NextEra is a dividend aristocrat having increased its dividend for 31 consecutive years.  

Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) became a household name in 2020 and 2021 when it was one of the biotechnology companies approved for a COVID-19 vaccine. 

Its vaccine, developed alongside Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE), was significant for using mRNA technology—a new approach that teaches the body’s cells to produce proteins that trigger an immune response. This method allows for faster, more adaptable vaccine development.

Moderna’s broader mission is to transform medicine by making mRNA-based treatments a reality. Beyond vaccines, the company is now exploring mRNA’s potential in treating cancer—in partnership with Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK)—as well as genetic disorders and other unmet medical needs.

However, the real game-changer may come as mRNA medicines are used to develop potential new treatments for cancer, in partnership with Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK), as well as genetic disorders and other unmet health conditions. At the beginning of 2025, Moderna forecasted 10 new drug approvals in the next three years.  

The last five years have accelerated the trend toward e-commerce and entrepreneurship, and Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) is leading the way. 

Shopify empowers entrepreneurs and supports small businesses, particularly in developing nations by providing easy-to-use tools and resources that can help with responsible sourcing, carbon offsetting, and the promotion of eco-friendly products. And the company continues to make investments in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI). For example, its Shopify Magic tool helps customers edit photos and offers suggestions to change product descriptions and frequently asked questions.  

Subscription revenue is a key to Shopify’s business model, and it’s no surprise that the company’s revenue spiked in 2020 and 2021. But the SHOPP stock chart is showing that demand is down from its peak but hasn’t returned to 2019 levels, and is likely to remain higher. That’s consistent with a labor force that may never again look quite the same as it did prior to 2020.  

For many investors, Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) may simply be the company that collects trash and/or recycling. But the convergence of environment and waste reduction is a theme that makes trash big business.

Waste Management is a leader in recycling and waste reduction, which promotes the circular economy. The company is also a leader in generating clean energy from landfill gas. These initiatives promote the use of renewable energy while helping to mitigate the impact of climate change.  

And WM stock has been one of the top-performing stocks over the last five years delivering a total return of approximately 140%. That includes a dividend that has increased for 22 consecutive years and yields around 1.5%.  

Any conversation about changing the world must include AI—and NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) remains the market share leader in providing the key infrastructure that businesses will need to create and house their AI models.  

Artificial intelligence has so many applications ranging from gaming to healthcare to autonomous driving. But as rapidly as AI is changing modern life, it’s still in the early stages. And NVIDIA has a clear first-mover advantage.  

NVIDIA hardware is already used in 75% of the world’s TOP500 supercomputers. And as the push comes toward a quantum future, NVIDIA hardware will be critical to helping scientists solve some of the world’s most complex problems, including climate modeling and drug discovery. That means NVIDIA will be relevant for years to come, and that’s a good reason to believe that NVDA stock is still a great investment.