Carillon Tower Advisers, an investment management company, released its “Carillon Eagle Growth & Income Fund” third quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Although the S&P 500 Index had a 5.9% increase in third-quarter trading, the benchmark index ended the first nine months of 2024 with a remarkable 22.1% gain. The exceptional performance was fueled by a strong surge in technology stocks, artificial intelligence trends, and the start of a U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) rate reduction cycle. In addition, you can check the fund's top 5 holdings to determine its best picks for 2024.

Carillon Eagle Growth & Income Fund highlighted stocks like Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) in the third quarter 2024 investor letter. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) engages in integrated energy and chemicals operations that operates through Upstream and Downstream segments. The one-month return of Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) was 7.33%, and its shares gained 12.00% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On November 14, 2024, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) stock closed at $161.80 per share with a market capitalization of $288.476 billion.

Carillon Eagle Growth & Income Fund stated the following regarding Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:

"Chevron Corporation's (NYSE:CVX) lagging performance was tied to a combination of weaker than expected second-quarter earnings and the delay of a much-anticipated merger with a global independent energy company. Performance during the quarter was largely related to the timing of outages and maintenance at several locations, which are shorter-term issues. While the pending merger looks attractive, prior expectations had the deal closing in 2024. It is now more likely to close in mid-2025."

A tanker truck making its way through a refinery facility.

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 64 hedge fund portfolios held Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) at the end of the second quarter which was 62 in the previous quarter. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) generated earnings of $4.5 billion in the third-quarter or $2.48 per share. While we acknowledge the potential of Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.