Growth stocks generally describe companies that grow revenue and earnings faster than the industry average, and they can be a good way for investors to beat the market. These stocks are hugely popular on online brokerage Robinhood's stock-trading app because of their potential for outsized returns and their increased interest among the millennials that use the app.
Two popular Robinhood stocks -- Nike (NKE 0.05%) and NVIDIA (NVDA -1.62%) -- are poised for explosive growth because of their strong business models and compelling long-term growth drivers. Let's find out a bit more about these two companies.
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1. Nike: Strong branding power and growth
Nike is a blue-chip growth stock that is hugely popular on Robinhood. The company is still shaking off the impact of the coronavirus pandemic with shares up by 11% year to date, which is slightly above the S&P 500's return of 6% over the same time frame. Nike looks poised for continued growth because of the strength of its brands and international expansion.
Nike reported fiscal 2020 fourth-quarter earnings on June 25, and the results showed the full impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Net revenue declined 38% to $6.3 billion because the majority of Nike stores as well as the stores of its sales partners were closed for at least part of the quarter. However, the company used the situation as an opportunity to drive consumer use of its e-commerce sites, which led to a digital sales increase of 75% in the fourth quarter. Nike's Chinese business was also remarkably resilient -- growing 8% in fiscal 2020 despite the difficult macroeconomic environment.
While sales were down short-term, over the long term Nike has a massive moat in terms of branding -- especially with its legendary Jordan line of basketball shoes.
Jordan brand has evolved from a niche urban status symbol into a global luxury marquee that can hold its own against the likes of Kering's Gucci, Balenciaga, and LVMH's Louis Vuitton. Nike demonstrated its impressive pricing power with the July release of the limited Air Jordan Dior high-top for a retail price of $2,200. Jordan brand made up around 12% of Nike's wholesale equivalent revenue in fiscal 2020 and saw Chinese sales soar over 50% in the period.
2. NVIDIA: Game-changing innovation
NVIDIA is a household name among millennial gamers, many of whom custom-build PCs with its legendary graphics cards. With that in mind, it's no surprise that the company ranks among the most popular stocks on Robinhood. Shares have already soared 114% year to date and look poised for continued growth because of the launch of the company's game-changing RTX 30 series of graphics processing units (GPUs).
NVIDIA is no stranger to growth. The company reported second-quarter earnings on Aug. 19, and the results were a slam dunk.
Total revenue grew 50% to $3.87 billion, driven by spectacular expansion in the company's data center business, which saw its top line soar 167% to $1.75 billion due to strong client demand and the full incorporation of the 2019 Mellanox acquisition, which now represents around 30% of segment revenue. NVIDIA's gaming business also performed well in the quarter with revenue growing 24% to $1.65 billion on strong demand for graphics cards.
NVIDIA is a market leader in the gaming laptop category through its RTX 20 Max-Q graphics cards which have a significantly smaller form factor than the RTX 20 cards used in PCs. These devices are ideal for consumers who are working, learning, and gaming from home.
Over the long term, NVIDIA can ensure continued market dominance in the gaming segment through its second-generation GeForce RTX 30 line of graphics cards scheduled to launch on Sept. 17. These GPUs are powered by NVIDIA's Ampere architecture and will deliver significantly improved performance over the RTX 20 line at a competitive price.
