The financial markets are going through a difficult period. Investors have to deal with macroeconomic pressures, upcoming elections and geopolitical tensions. But how to keep your portfolio safe and make profits despite these challenges? The key is to ignore the short-term "noise" and focus on stocks with long-term potential.

In this article, we introduce you to three stocks that are favorites of top Wall Street analysts.

Costco Wholesale $COST

The analysts' first choice is Costco Wholesale, which operates a chain of warehouse stores on a membership basis. The company recently announced an increase in membership fees - the fee for a basic "Gold Star" membership will increase by $5 to $65 per year, and the fee for a premium "Executive Membership" will rise from $120 to $130.

Analyst Corey Tarlowe of Jefferies reacted positively to the increase, reiterating a buy recommendation on Costco stock and raising his target price from $860 to $1,050. He believes this increase in membership fees is a good catalyst for the company's stock and earnings growth. Tarlowe recalls that Costco raises fees every 5.5 years on average, but this time it was after seven years. The company is in great shape, he says, as evidenced by strong June sales.

MongoDB $MDB

The second pick is MongoDB, which specializes in database software. The company's stock took a tumble in May after announcing a weak second-quarter outlook and lowering its full-year outlook. Analyst Ivan Feinseth of Tigress Financial lowered his target price on MongoDB stock from $500 to $400, but still recommends a buy.

Feinseth believes the weak start to the year presents a buying opportunity. The company continues to gain popularity among developers and its Atlas DBaaS (database as a service) product is gaining momentum. Feinseth expects the integration of artificial intelligence into MongoDB's offerings will improve developer productivity and accelerate application development, which will support the company's continued growth.

Nvidia $NVDA

The third pick is semiconductor giant Nvidia. The wave of generative AI has greatly increased demand for the company's advanced GPUs. Even after this year's impressive stock price gains, Goldman Sachs analyst Toshiya Hari believes Nvidia stock still has room to grow.

After meeting with Nvidia CFO Colette Kress, Hari reiterated a buy recommendation on the stock and set a target price of $135. The analyst said the meeting reinforced his confidence in the sustainability of the ongoing generative AI spending cycle and in Nvidia's innovative capabilities.

Hari believes that despite growing competition, Nvidia will maintain its leadership position due to its large installed base and better access to supply. The speed at which large enterprises and cloud service providers are building and deploying generative AI models gives Nvidia an edge over competitors.

Disclaimer: There is a lot of inspiration to be found on Bulios, but stock selection and portfolio construction is up to you, so always do a thorough analysis of your own.

Source: Yahoo Finance.