Market Insights

August brought upsets to TradeStation’s rankings as clients shifted attention to big technology companies. Major exchange-traded funds lost interest.

Apple (AAPL), which didn’t even make the Top 10 in June or July, was the busiest stock at TradeStation last month. The surge in activity came after a transformative earnings report drove the smart-phone giant into new record territory.

Chip maker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), the top-performing tech stock so far this quarter, also joined the list.

SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), the most popular symbol for most of the year, continued to slide down the rankings. iPath S&P 500 VIX (VXX) also slipped and other index-linked products like PowerShares QQQ Trust (QQQ) disappeared from the top 10. It may not be a surprise because these funds typically benefit from higher volatility, which has dwindled as the S&P 500 establishes new highs.

Here’s the complete list for August:

1. Apple (AAPL): The smart-phone maker rose from the No. 12 spot in July.
2. Facebook (FB): The ailing social-media giant edged down from first place the previous month.
3. Amazon.com (AMZN): The e-commerce giant climbed two levels.
4. Tesla Motors (TSLA): The electric-car maker rose two notches from July.
5. Nvidia (NVDA): The high-flying semiconductor company rose from No. 11 the previous month.
6. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): The chipmaker shot up from No. 15.
7. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY): The market-tracking fund slipped four notches from a month prior.
8. Netflix (NFLX): The streaming-video giant dropped from the second-busiest position in July.
9. Alibaba (BABA): The Chinese e-commerce company rose from No. 14 in the previous month.
10. iPath S&P 500 VIX (VXX): The market-inverse instrument slipped from eighth place.