Top stock picks for 2023 from BofA - tech, media and telecom

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The broader market will finish the year below its current level, but there are plenty of tech stocks opportunities, according to the global equity team at BofA.

BofA's U.S. equity call is for the S&P 500 (SP500) (NYSEARCA:SPY) to end the year at 4,000 with EPS down 9% year on year at $200. The bull case is 4,600 and the bear case is for a drop to 3,000.

Strategist Anthony Cassamassino compiled a list of the top picks from the research team.

"The list below represents an informal survey of our Senior Research Analysts and is one of but many lists and screens that BofA Research regularly updates to satisfy a diverse spectrum of investment goals," Cassamassino wrote in a note.

Here are the picks in Communication Services (XLC) and Tech (XLK).

• Amazon (AMZN), $135 - "We think Amazon is well positioned to capitalize on the global growth of eCommerce and other secular trends such as cloud computing, online advertising and connected devices."

Seeking Alpha's Quant Rating has a Hold valuation and momentum weighing.

• Applied Materials (AMAT), $140 - "Near term we ... see a favorable set up from stabilized pricing/tight supply in memory and capacity constraints on the leading and lagging."

Quant Rating of Hold with strong profitability.

• AT&T (T), $25 - "Historically, the stock has outperformed during periods of M&A and wireless margin expansion fueled EPS growth and during periods of market uncertainty when AT&T's dividend yield and predictable business model are highly valued."

Quant Rating of Hold with a D- for growth.

• Chewy (CHWY), $54 - "We believe that its subscription focused growth model and niche positioning as a specialist will allow it to grow in tandem with Amazon."

Quant Rating of Hold with top grades for revisions and an F for valuation.

• Cisco (CSCO), $52 - "We rate Cisco Buy based on our belief that the company is ahead of product cycles that span +35% of product revenues, including 400G, 5G, WiFi 6, and 400ZR/Optical, and we also see comps improving, which should provide a tailwind to revenue growth."

Quant Rating of Hold for the past year.

• GitLab (GTLB), $78 - "The DevOps ecosystem is currently fragmented, but GitLab's core SCM applications positions the business to become a future platform winner, driving the business to become larger and more profitable over time."

Quant Rating of Strong Buy with an A+ for growth.

See the picks for Industrials and Materials.