Dogecoin's (DOGE -4.58%) rebound was short-lived. The popular cryptocurrency plunged nearly 56% below its peak before mounting a comeback. It then rallied more than 30% -- briefly. Now, though, most of the fleeting gains have evaporated.
You could wait and see if Dogecoin bounces back in a more sustainable way. On the other hand, you could also pour your money into the stocks of solid companies with great growth prospects. My take is to forget Dogecoin: These growth stocks are better buys right now.
Image source: Getty Images.
MercadoLibre
Like Dogecoin, MercadoLibre (MELI -1.96%) is well below its highs from earlier this year. The Latin American stock has fallen more than 30% since mid-January. Why? Investors appear to be worried that the company's growth will slow down as worries about COVID-19 fade.
MercadoLibre delivered sizzling growth throughout 2020, thanks in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic. The momentum continued into the first quarter of this year, with revenue soaring more than 158% on a constant-currency basis.
The company's e-commerce platform remains the 800-pound gorilla in the key Latin American markets of Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. MercadoLibre is also gaining ground with its fintech business, with total payment volume jumping 129% year over year in Q1.
The hot growth fueled by the pandemic is cooling off somewhat. MercadoLibre's Q1 growth rate was slower than in the previous quarter. However, the company's long-term prospects continue to look really good. With its strong position in Latin America, favorable demographic trends in the region, and a market cap of only around $66 billion, MercadoLibre is a stock that could even deliver a 10 times return over the next decade.
Pinterest (PINS -2.86%) stands out as another great stock that has been beaten down due to investors' concerns about slowing growth. Its shares sank as much as 38% before rebounding somewhat. However, the social media stock is still more than 20% below its peak in February.
The main concern about Pinterest is its slowing monthly-active-user growth in the U.S. My view, though, is that the turbocharged growth rate that Pinterest experienced during the worst of the pandemic couldn't continue indefinitely. As COVID-19 restrictions ease, it's inevitable that Americans will spend less time online and more time resuming their other normal activities.
Meanwhile, Pinterest continues to enjoy strong international user growth. Granted, the company doesn't generate as much revenue per user in international markets as it does in the U.S. However, I think this represents more of an opportunity than a problem.
Pinterest's platform lends itself well to increased monetization. Its users focus more on specific products (pinning those products to their boards) than users on other social media sites do. As Pinterest closes the monetization gap, I predict the stock will handsomely reward patient investors.
Teladoc Health
This might sound like a broken record: Teladoc Health's (TDOC -4.64%) shares have plunged nearly 50% from highs set earlier this year because of investors' concerns about (you probably guessed it) slowing growth.
Like MercadoLibre and Pinterest, Teladoc benefited tremendously from the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual-healthcare visits skyrocketed. And so did the company's revenue. But as pandemic restrictions have been lifted in the U.S., Teladoc's growth rate has decreased. It also didn't help that this summer, Amazon announced plans to jump head first into the telehealth market.
Should you forget Teladoc and return to Dogecoin? I don't think so. For one thing, the potential virtual-care market is huge. International consulting firm McKinsey projects that the U.S. virtual-care market alone could reach $250 billion per year after the pandemic is over. That's a big-enough market to support multiple winners.
Teladoc is in the best position to capture a large chunk of this addressable market. The company's customer base already includes more than 40% of the Fortune 500. It offers a broader range of virtual-care products and services than any of its rivals.
Teladoc might be down now, but over the long run, this growth stock should be a big winner.
