According to research by AJ Bell, 63% of all active analyst ratings on UK stocks are currently set to Buy – the most bullish institutional sentiment seen in over a decade. So, even with markets near record highs, the experts clearly see plenty of opportunity ahead.

Here are three of their highest-conviction picks.

1. RELX: the data giant

RELX (LSE:REL) is a global information analytics company providing data, tools, and decision support across legal, scientific, medical, and financial sectors.

The long-term bull case is built on RELX’s extraordinary pricing power. Its customers are usually law firms, hospitals, and research institutions that are deeply embedded in RELX’s platforms and have very few credible alternatives. That kind of moat is exceptionally hard to replicate.

The bear case? Some worry that the rapid rise of AI could gradually erode this moat by directly attacking the value proposition of the group’s proprietary datasets. After all, cheaper third-party tools can do a similar job, so why would customers pay a premium?

Luckily, so far, that narrative hasn’t proven to be true, but it’s nonetheless still a risk.

2. AstraZeneca: the global pharma titan powering ahead

AstraZeneca (LSE:AZN) is one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, with a blockbuster pipeline spanning oncology, cardiovascular disease, and rare conditions.

Analysts at Citigroup, Barclays, and JP Morgan are all firmly in the Buy camp, with 81% of covering analysts recommending the stock. Why? Because the company might have one of the most impressive drug pipelines in the industry, with multiple late-stage trials that could unlock significant new revenue streams over the coming decade.

Of course, that doesn’t mean success is guaranteed. Drug development is exceptionally expensive and uncertain. And pipeline failures or pricing pressure from government healthcare systems could disappoint investors who’ve priced in significant success.

3. Beazley: the specialist insurer flying under the radar

Beazley (LSE:BEZ) is one of Lloyd’s of London’s leading specialist insurers, covering complex risks including cyber threats, marine, property, and professional indemnity across global markets.

Today, the company is riding two powerful tailwinds.

First, cyber insurance is one of the fastest-growing segments in the entire insurance industry. And Beazley is already recognised as a market leader with deep underwriting expertise that competitors struggle to replicate quickly.

The second tailwind is the higher-for-longer interest rate environment. Thanks to increased income from bonds and other short-duration fixed-income instruments. Beazley’s significant investment portfolio is already generating materially better returns than in previous years. And combined these factors are boosting profitability from two directions at once.

But like all investments, there are risks to consider, most notably the inherently unpredictable nature of the specialist insurance business.

A major catastrophe or an unexpected surge in cyber claims could result in significant and sudden losses that pressure both the balance sheet and the share price.

The bottom line

These are three very different businesses. But they all share a common thread: institutional analysts back all three with rare conviction.

For investors wondering which FTSE shares to buy and hold through whatever the next decade brings, this trio looks like a compelling place to start investigating further. But they’re not the only opportunities I’ve got my eye on right now…

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As of Friday (8 May), Brent crude was hovering above $100 a barrel — roughly 40%-60% higher than February. Global stocks have felt the pinch: the MSCI World index is down around 4% in the first quarter and over 6% just in March.

Markets in Europe, the UK and Asia tend to suffer single-day dips of 2%-3% whenever escalation headlines hit the news. Meanwhile, energy stocks have benefited, with oil companies up 40%-45% and the broader energy sector nearly as strong.

So the market hasn’t crashed yet, but if this volatility keeps eroding confidence, things could get shaky.

What are major institutions saying?

We already know that central banks aren’t rushing to cut rates anymore. The Fed, ECB and Bank of England are holding steady and warning that this energy shock could keep inflation stubborn — and rates higher — for longer than anyone hoped. 

A brief look at investor chatter and anyone can see that anxiety is on the rise. Talk revolves around slower growth, sticky prices and even stagflation if oil prices don’t drop. People are even hinting at the possibility of a 1970s-style impact if the energy crisis worsens.

Yet the IMF, along with big insurers, aren’t losing their minds just yet. They believe that while the situation’s serious, it’s contained — for now.

Their worst-case warnings? A drawn-out mess pushing oil toward $150, sparking a global recession and forcing central banks to pick between fighting inflation or propping up growth.

So how should investors prepare for that scenario?

Safeguarding a portfolio

Most forecasts expect some de-escalation, with prices easing over time. For long-term investors with diversified portfolios, it would make sense to tilt toward sectors such as energy, defence, staples and infrastructure.

Keep some cash handy too but don’t try timing every headline or guessing the next twist. One area that many investors neglect is defensive tilting: instead of selling stocks to cut risk, shift to shares that weather storms.

One example for investors to consider is RELX (LSE: REL).

The threat of AI has knocked it down nearly 40% over the past year, but that’s arguably a plus. The fear now looks priced in, unlike a cyclical bet like Rolls-Royce that could drop more.

But AI disruption’s still an undeniable risk. If freely available tools outpace RELX’s ability to innovate, profits could dip and investors could flee.

So could it bounce back?

Personally, I think RELX has strong recovery potential. Here’s why:

• Solid fundamentals: 9.3% annual earnings growth over five years, revenue up 7.1% on average.
• Wide moat remains despite AI threats (could even be an opportunity).
• Analysts’ average 12-month target suggests 39.6% upside.
• The geopolitical situation increases demand for risk analysis tools.

Looking at its other financials, the valuation shows a price only 20 times earnings, which I think is cheap for a company of this quality. Plus, while its yield’s modest at around 2.7%, it’s growing steadily and is supported by buybacks.

At the end of the day, defensive shares like RELX remain one of the most popular methods to reduce risk exposure. And it’s just one of many I’ve covered recently.

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Indeed, those currently (3 May) receiving the full UK State Pension of £12,548 might look abroad with envy. Many European countries pay more. The most generous is Iceland where pensioners can receive up to £30,251 per annum!  

However, with its attractive tax advantages I think a SIPP could help those who don’t want to move overseas. Let me explain.

Please note that tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.

How do the numbers stack up?

One popular retirement strategy is to invest regularly in a SIPP and buy some growth shares. In theory, these are more likely to beat the returns of the wider market.

The average annual return of the FTSE 100 from 2006-2026 was 6.4%. This assumes all dividends were reinvested buying more shares.

However, by adopting a successful stock-picking strategy, I believe it’s possible to do better. Of course, with the benefit of hindsight it’s easy to find stocks that have out-performed the Footsie over various periods. But I don’t know anyone clever enough to always pick the best.

Instead, to be more realistic, let’s look at the stock ranked 50th in the league table of FTSE 100 performers over the past five years. How did it do?

Who?

Well, RELX (LSE:REL), the global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools, has delivered an average annual return of 8.9%. Again, this assumes all payouts were used to buy more shares.

Someone investing £425 a month in a SIPP returning 8.9% will see it grow to £468,617 after 25 years. If this is then used to buy a portfolio of dividend shares paying 6.6%, the average of the top 10 FTSE 100 yielders at the moment, it would produce an annual income of £30,928, a little more than Iceland’s full State Pension.

I think it’s fair to say that RELX isn’t a household name. But it’s delivered impressive earnings per share (EPS) growth in recent years.

Looking back over its 2021-2025 financial performance:

• Revenue’s increased 32%.
• EPS’s now 47% higher.
• Adjusted operating margin’s improved 4.3 percentage points.

However, its share price has taken a bit of a knock lately. There are fears that artificial intelligence (AI) could disrupt its business model, making it easier for cheaper alternatives to gain market share.

It also remains vulnerable to a cyber attack.

My view

But the group sees AI as an opportunity rather than a threat. The continued evolution of artificial intelligence is enabling us to add more value to our customers, as we embed additional functionality in our products, and to develop and launch products at a faster pace, while continuing to manage cost growth below revenue growth

And with its blue-chip customer base and huge global presence, it has enormous pricing power. Also, its shares are trading well below their five-year earnings multiple.

That’s why I reckon investors looking for a reliable performer to tuck away in a SIPP (and those not wanting to move to Iceland) could consider RELX as part of a diversified portfolio.

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Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden has sounded the alarm on multiple fronts. The US-Iran war has created what she called “the worst energy shock in my living memory.” Government debt is ballooning. Private credit is showing cracks. And equity valuations, she warns, are “stretched” in ways that “rhyme with the vulnerabilities” that preceded the 2008 financial crisis.

If she’s right, it sounds like a total market meltdown could be right around the corner. So, should investors be hitting the sell button?

Don’t try to time the market

While Breeden’s comments are concerning, it’s important to remember that no one truly knows when or even if a market crash is coming.

Even in the last few years, there have been plenty of financial experts proclaiming that catastrophe is just around the corner. Yet so far, none of these predictions has come true. And the investors who listened to the warnings and sold have subsequently missed out on some of the best performances from UK shares seen in over a decade.

While there are some genuine and justified concerns, staying invested in high-quality businesses today is likely still the smarter play.

One stock built for this environment

In all this uncertainty, there are a few stocks that institutional investors are quietly backing. And among these stands RELX (LSE:REL) where the thesis is pretty compelling.

RELX is one of the world’s leading providers of professional information, analytics, and decision tools. Through flagship brands like LexisNexis and Elsevier, it serves the legal, scientific, medical, and financial communities with data products they simply cannot function without.

Even during a recession, courts still need case law, hospitals still need medical research, and banks still need credit risk analytics, making demand structurally non-negotiable.

Its 2025 results perfectly highlighted this structural necessity. Revenue and underlying earnings climbed to record highs, while dividends received a 7% bump alongside the launch of a new £2.25bn share buyback programme.

Pair all that with management raising its guidance for 2026, and it’s no wonder 16 out of 17 analysts currently rate the stock as a Buy or Outperform with an average 12-month share price target of 3,385p – 26.7% higher than where RELX shares trade today.

So, is this a no-brainer?

What could go wrong?

Despite the robust financials, RELX shares were sold off drastically earlier this year on fears of incoming AI disruption.

With cheap-and-cheerful AI models proving increasingly effective at drafting legal documents, summarising medical information, and analysing financial data, will there even be a need for LexisNexis or Elsevier in the future?

It’s a fair question. But so far, the evidence points to the answer being yes.

RELX has already been busy actively embedding AI into its own analytics tools, using the technology to deepen switching costs rather than erode them. And with proprietary datasets spanning decades, its competitive moats are far more considerable than what many bearish investors might think.

That’s why, for investors rattled by the Bank of England’s warnings, RELX could be worth a deeper dive as storm clouds gather. I know I’m certainly taking a closer look.

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Of course, the index has always pumped dividends out, adding significantly to the total return. But compared with the tech-heavy S&P 500, the Footsie’s price return was pretty abysmal until recently.

As such, it had earned plenty of unflattering names, including the ‘Jurassic Park index’ and ‘Sideways index’. I even remember one article calling it something like a ‘nursing home for companies’, due to its old-economy banks, miners, and oil majors. Ouch.

But what a difference the last three years have made. Over this time, the FTSE 100 has kicked into a much higher gear, generating a 13.56% annualised return (which includes reinvested dividends).

To put this in context, it means a £5,000 investment made three years ago in a FTSE 100 index tracker would now be worth roughly £7,320 (net of fees). That’s a significant improvement on previous years.

What has changed?

Looking at the chart, there has been a noticeable jolt higher in the past two years. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few things that might have contributed to this:

• President Trump’s volatile and unpredictable policymaking
• Falling interest rates
• Rotation away from some US growth stocks to UK value stocks
• Surging energy and commodity prices (benefitting oil and mining stocks)
• Bank stocks coming back into fashion

Another powerful trade that has taken hold in the past year or so is a preference for HALO (heavy assets, low obsolescence) stocks. That is companies with tangible assets that aren’t at risk of being made obsolete by artificial intelligence (AI).

So that would be ‘Jurassic Park’-type companies like defence giant BAE Systems (up 52% in two years) and supermarket supremo Tesco (+66%).

Perhaps the ultimate HALO firm is National Grid, the energy transmission monopoly. You can’t disrupt the physical transmission of electricity with a chatbot.

Indeed, a surge in data centres to support AI is likely to make National Grid more relevant than ever. Normally a sleepy stock, it’s now up 34% in the past two years.

Smashed software

The other side of this HALO trade has been software and data companies, which have sold off massively in the last 12 months. These include Rightmove (-39.4%), Autotrader (-38%), Sage (-25.3%), and Experian (-25.6%).

Another is RELX (LSE:REL), which I think is a FTSE 100 stock worth considering. It’s down 33% in the past year.

RELX sells data and analytics tools to professionals, including lawyers, scientists, and banks. The big risk is that new AI models eventually make this data less valuable, potentially reducing customers and eroding pricing power. 

However, a recent trading statement stated: “RELX started the year well across all four business areas and has continued to deliver strong underlying revenue and profit growth, and strong new sales.”

Management has consistently said that AI is more of an opportunity than a threat, And its own AI tools are attracting more spending from customers, including on its leading legal research platform LexisNexis.

After its crash, the stock’s trading at just 17 times forward earnings. All 15 City analysts covering RELX rate it as a Buy at 2,678p, with an average price target that’s nearly 30% higher.

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On top of that, analysts predict a new record for dividends from the top London index this year. They could reach as much as £86bn. And that’s without considering further cash returns from share buybacks.

100% bullish

A look at recommendations for RELX (LSE: REL) shows all 15 out of the 15 brokers I could find with a Buy or Outperform stance on the stock. Those two things essentially mean the same. And their average price target of 3,600p is a full 33% above the price at the time of writing.

RELX went rapidly out of fashion as investors feared the AI revolution could overtake its business, which involves data analytics — specialising in the medical, legal and business sectors.

But at 2025 results time in February, the company reported a 7% rise in revenue, with adjusted operating profit up 9% and earnings per share up 10%. The board lifted the dividend by an inflation-busting 7%.

RELX is in fact using AI to its advantage. CEO Erik Engstrom told us: “The continued evolution of artificial intelligence is enabling us to add more value to our customers, as we embed additional functionality in our products, and to develop and launch products at a faster pace.” He added it “will remain a key driver of customer value and growth in our business for many years to come.“

The AI revolution could also make it easier for competitors to try to steal an edge, so we need to watch for that. But I rate RELX as one to consider for investors looking for real-world profits enhanced by AI.

Earnings growth

AstraZeneca (LSE: AZN) doesn’t inspire quite the same 100% following. But of a list of 24 analysts offering targets, a full 20 of them think we should buy the stock. And only two see it as a Sell.

In this case, we’re looking at a share price that’s had a very solid five years. But that comes on the back of impressive profit growth. Earnings per share (EPS) more than trebled between 2022 and 2025. And analysts predict EPS growth of a further 60% by 2028.

On top of that, they expect net debt to drop from the $23.4bn recorded at the end of 2025, to just $2.4bn over that same timescale.

AstraZeneca has long been on a premium P/E valuation, with a multiple of 26 on the cards for 2026. It could drop to 20 by 2028, which is still above the FTSE 100 long-term average. Would that still be justified? I think a key danger is that the earnings growth cycle might start to fade, and that could drive growth investors away.

Still, we have two stocks here that City analysts think investors should consider buying. I find it impossible to disagree.

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The surge in gold prices over the last few years has been driven by a genuine increase in safe-haven asset demand courtesy of all the geopolitical uncertainty. But there’s also a lot of speculation going on. And it’s why gold prices have become quite volatile in recent weeks, falling by double digits.

And it could be on the verge of falling even further.

If the conflicts in Eastern Europe or the Middle East begin de-escalating, that could be the ultimate catalyst that triggers a commodity sell-off as geopolitical risk drops and investors rush to lock-in their multi-year rally profits.

But that money has to go somewhere. And history shows that the stock market is often the most popular destination. That’s why, with plenty of quality FTSE 100 stocks trading at discounted prices today, I think now’s an excellent time to capitalise on bargains in the pursuit of impressive long-term gains. And with the right moves, it could even pave the way for an earlier retirement.

Why FTSE 100 shares?

In recent years, the UK’s flagship index has delivered far more impressive returns compared to other indices. And a big reason why boils down to the type of companies it contains. Beyond being in primarily defensive sectors, the majority of UK large-cap stocks generate revenue from international markets.

This geographic diversification not only helps reduce risk, but also means that the UK’s notoriously weak economy hasn’t held them back. And this structural advantage is a big reason why the FTSE 100 continues to outpace the FTSE 250 even in 2026.

So which companies should investors be looking at today?

A contrarian April pick

Out of all the FTSE 100 stocks that have taken a tumble recently, RELX (LSE:REL) currently stands out as an interesting potential outlier. Despite the share price getting slashed by almost a third over the last 12 months, the business is actually still delivering impressive results.

AI disruption fears resulted in a lot of panic selling in February. Yet the evidence so far suggests quite the opposite’s happening, with the group’s new AI tools not only attracting new customers, but increasing the spend of existing ones.

Obviously, there’s no guarantee this won’t change. Cheap and cheerful third-party AI data analytics tools are improving. And whether RELX can protect its pricing power against fiercer competition remains to be seen.

Yet with the market shooting first and asking questions later, RELX shares are now trading below even the most pessimistic share price forecasts from institutional analysts.

With that in mind, it’s no surprise that 16 out of 17 analysts now recommend the stock as Buy or Outperform. And it seems even RELX’s management is following this advice with the unveiling of plans to buy back £2.25bn worth of its own shares in 2026 alone.

With the market pricing RELX as if it has already been disrupted despite evidence to the contrary, the risk-to-reward ratio looks quite favourable, in my eyes. And it could even be one of the best shares to buy right now.

So for investors looking for a discounted growth opportunity, RELX could be worth a closer look.

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So let’s break down exactly how much money a portfolio could generate.

Crunching the numbers

Saving £3 a day for investments works out to an average of £91.25 a month. And in 2026, that’s more than enough to kick-start an investing journey.

On average, FTSE shares typically generate close to 8% a year over the long term. So assuming an investor matches this level of return moving forward, how much could drip feeding £91.25 a month eventually be worth?

Well, for those able to keep up this disciplined investing approach for 30 years, the answer’s £135,995.30. And following the 4% withdrawal rule, that translates into a sustainable passive income of £5,439.81.

Obviously, earning an extra £5.5k isn’t going to open the door to a life of endless luxury. But it’s undeniably going to help cover the bare essentials during retirement, as is having a six-figure portfolio for the lowly price of just £3 a day.

So the question now becomes, which FTSE shares are the ones to consider buying in 2026?

A top FTSE pick from the pros

There are plenty of quality compounders across the FTSE universe. But one business that institutional investors have begun eying in April is RELX (LSE:REL).

For years, this data analytics technology business traded at a premium valuation, generating an average return of 12.5% a year in the decade leading up to 2026. But earlier this year, the shares were sold off on fears of potential artificial intelligence (AI) disruption.

It isn’t hard to understand why investors were spooked. After all, accessing RELX’s tools is very expensive, especially compared to some cheap-and-cheerful AI models that are now floating around. But since then, nerves have started to, well, relax. And the FTSE stock has already bounced back over 20% since its February lows.

Experts believe RELX’s proprietary data remains mission-critical for countless businesses, creating a moat that might be much harder to displace. And with the company having already spent several years building its own suite of AI tools, the ‘disruptive’ technology is currently helping the business, not harming it.

Where’s the risk?

Even if cheaper AI tools can’t match RELX’s quality, for everyday basic tasks, these models may prove more than sufficient. And that could translate into fewer RELX subscriptions, undercutting pricing power, and reducing annual recurring revenue generation.

It’s also worth highlighting that while RELX shares are now still much cheaper, relative to earnings, the stock still carries a bit of a premium. And that does open the door to higher volatility that might test the risk tolerances of more conservative investors.

Yet overall, I believe the FTSE stock has been hit by a panic-driven overreaction this year rather than being truly disrupted. That might change over time. But for now, the moat appears to be intact with the company’s nicely positioned to potentially outperform expectations.

So for investors looking for a quality compounder to help build long-term wealth and passive income, RELX shares could be worth mulling.

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And now that the Iran war and other wider macroeconomic volatility have pushed several high-conviction names to even more attractive entry points, investors could have a long list of rare buying opportunities to capitalise on.

With that in mind, here are two of the most popular expert stock picks.

1. A deep-value recovery play

First on the list is Barratt Redrow (LSE:BTRW) – the UK’s largest residential housebuilder.

Of the 19 analysts tracking the business, 16 have rated the FTSE 100 stock as either a Buy or Outperform, with only three recommending holding. And when looking at the share price forecasts, even the most pessimistic outlook suggests the stock’s trading at a discounted valuation.

That seems to directly conflict with the government’s housebuilding mandate and incoming planning reforms – a massive tailwind for the business. And when combining this with the firm’s robust balance sheet and ongoing cost synergies already ahead of schedule, it’s no wonder the consensus is bullish.

Despite this positive sentiment, the stock’s been stuck on a downward trajectory for several years now, due to inflationary margin pressure and slow speed of interest rate cuts – both of which now look likely to persist in 2026 due to the conflict in the Middle East.

A lack of confidence in the government’s ability to deliver on its home-building targets is also understandably giving investors some pause. But while there’s no denying the short-term outlook appears murky, the long-term picture seems to support a gradual recovery. And that’s something worth investigating further.

2. Quality compounder at a massive discount

Another top pick from the experts is RELX (LSE:REL). Just like Barratt Redrow, the overwhelming consensus from analysts is bullish, with 15 Buy or Outperform recommendations and only one Hold and one Sell rating as of April.

It’s the same story with analyst share price forecasts, with even the most pessimistic projection suggesting the stock’s undervalued by double digits. So what’s going on here?

As one of the world’s largest proprietary data & analytics providers, RELX found itself caught in the crossfire of the recent AI-disruption sell-off in early February.

Yet despite these concerns, AI’s so far proven to be a tailwind, not a headwind, for this business. And consequently, with the bottom line being driven higher by its own AI tools, the company now trades at its cheapest valuation not seen in years on a price-to-earnings basis.

While the initial sell-off might have been overblown, the jury’s still out on whether RELX can remain competitive in a world of cheap alternative AI-powered data analytics solutions. And with some of the group’s largest end markets like legal research already being targeted, RELX’s margins could come under pressure.

Nevertheless, with an impressive track record of outmanoeuvring competitors, betting against this industry incumbent could prove to be a costly mistake, making it another stock to consider buying in 2026.

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Selling shares in moments like this can easily backfire. We’ve seen three shocks in recent years. The pandemic in 2020, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and last year’s US tariffs. Each time, markets recovered at speed.

FTSE 100 correction

The latest crisis has triggered a correction, with the FTSE 100 falling more than 10%. Housebuilders Persimmon, Berkeley Group Holdings and Barratt Redrow have all crashed by 25%.

The sell-off looked like a classic buying opportunity but I suspect many investors hesitated, fearing worse to come. Yet history shows that moments like these present the best opportunities to buy shares.

Those who’ve held back may be kicking themselves today. The FTSE 100 climbed a meaty 4.57% in the four trading days to Good Friday (3 April). So has the opportunity gone? I don’t think so.

Markets never move in straight lines. There are good days and bad days, both in bull and bear markets. Trying to pinpoint the perfect moment to buy is well nigh impossible. At today’s reduced valuations, plenty of FTSE 100 stocks still look irresistible to me.

RELX is a different story

One top stock has fallen sharply lately and it’s got nothing to do with Iran. Data and analytics specialist RELX (LSE: REL) supplies subscription-based tools to industries including law, insurance, finance and science, helping professionals assess risk, manage compliance and carry out complex research.

It’s a British success story, combining steady growth with several decades steadily rising dividends. Over the last 15 years, they’ve climbed at an average rate of 8.3% a year. But there’s been a shadow hanging over RELX for some time.

When ChatGPT burst onto the scene in late 2023, investors feared generative AI could reduce demand for expensive specialist databases. Those concerns returned with a vengeance in February, when Anthropic launched AI tool Claude for legal teams. The RELX share price plunged and while it’s recovered a little, it’s still down about 35% over 12 months.

On 12 February, RELX reported a healthy 9% increase in underlying operating profit to £3.3bn. But it’s the future investors are worried about. The valuation has come down sharply. The price-to-earnings ratio is now around 19.35, compared with above 30 not long ago. The dividend yield has nudged up to 2.7%.

We still don’t know how big a threat AI will pose, but it could struggle to replicate the depth of RELX’s data and industry relationships. RELX is also fighting back by adding AI functionality to its platform. I think it’s worth considering. As ever, investors should take their own view.

There are always opportunities in the market, whether it’s rising or falling. Today, plenty of FTSE 100 stocks are now trading near a 10-year lows. Which means there’s already a big opportunity out there now. And I wouldn’t be surprised if we got an even bigger one in the days ahead.

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