A CIO who manages $13 billion gives his top 5 stock picks as the US-Iran conflict roils markets

Palantir has had a rough year, down 21% so far in 2026, but Miller says it should be on investors' radars.

Palantir doesn't build weapons like some of its aerospace peers, but Miller thinks the stock is set up to outperform in the near term amid increased focus on defense and military spending.

"The fact that they're creating software for the defense industry that is a beneficiary of AI and intelligence gathering is what determines, in many respects, how you do or do not win wars," Miller said.

Defense stocks have already been early winners amid the latest conflict, and Miller thinks RTX, formerly Raytheon, is particularly well-positioned as demand for weapons systems increases.

"The companies that have the most exposure to missile defense systems are the ones that are gonna be the biggest beneficiaries of increased demand."

RTX stock is up 14% year to date.

Oil prices surged in response to the conflict, prompting predictions of widespread disruptions to energy flows through the critical Strait of Hormuz. While it remains unclear how high crude prices can go, Miller thinks Chevron stock is poised to gain.

"A company that's especially well positioned for this crisis, on the larger-cap side would be Chevron, [as] they can be both beneficiaries of the situation in Venezuela and their existing operations that they haven't given up there, but are also well positioned for increases in the price of WTI or Brent," he said.

Chevron stock is up 26% in 2026.

Chevron isn't the only oil and gas play that Miller is eyeing, though. He's also thinking about smaller-cap companies in the space, like Talos Energy, which focuses primarily on natural gas exploration and production.

While Miller thinks larger-cap domestic oil producers are better positioned to rise if the conflict is prolonged, he sees Talos, which trades at much lower levels, as a smaller peer that can benefit from a sustained rise in oil prices.

Talos shares have gained 22% this year.

With geopolitical tensions high and uncertainty spreading quickly, Miller thinks safe-haven assets are likely to benefit, particularly gold. He named Agnico Eagle Mines, a Canada-based gold producer, as a strategic way to gain exposure to the precious metal.

"Emerging market nations are going to want to be getting off the dollar more and replacing that with gold reserves," he predicted. "The primary beneficiary of that would likely be Agnico Eagle Mines, [as] they don't hedge much to the price of gold for their production."

Shares of Agnico Eagle Mines are up 37% year to date.