A $10,000 investment in Amazon would have climbed roughly 10,000% over the last 15 years and be worth over $1 million today. A $10,000 investment in Netflix across that same time period would have risen approximately 14,700% and now be worth about $1.48 million.
Finding companies that go on to perform at super-high levels for decades-long runs is easier said than done, but having just a couple of big winners in your portfolio can be life-changing. With that in mind, read on for a look at two promising tech stocks that have the potential to deliver explosive growth for investors.
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PubMatic
Digital advertising is the lifeblood of many of the internet's most popular applications and websites. It's at the heart of social media hubs such as Facebook and Twitter, and it's helping to power big growth for streaming video platforms like Roku, in addition to countless other sites and services. PubMatic (PUBM -2.27%) is an advertising technology company that's helping to facilitate the ongoing digital advertising revolution by helping customers monetize ad impressions with data-based automated bidding.
The company's share price is down roughly 55% from the high that it hit earlier this year, and the stock looks attractively valued for risk-tolerant investors willing to embrace the potential for near-term volatility. PubMatic has a market capitalization of roughly $1.5 billion and trades at approximately 61 times this year's expected earnings.
As it expands its customer base and continues to build out its technology platform, earnings growth may be uneven in the near term, but the company's long-term expansion outlook remains very promising. It is increasing sales at a rapid clip (54% year over year in the first quarter and 31% last year) and looks poised for big earnings growth down the line.
The company posted a gross margin of roughly 72% in the first quarter, which bodes well for long-term earnings growth even if that level proves difficult to maintain as the business scales. PubMatic also managed to grow sales 54% year over year in the period and record a net revenue retention rate of 130%. Customers already on board with the company's ad tech platform are significantly increasing their spending, and that's a good sign that they're getting significant value from the services.
This is a company that's still small enough to deliver huge growth, and it's got a sticky product offering in an industry that has a favorable growth outlook. That could prove to be a recipe for explosive stock gains.
Ubisoft
Ubisoft (UBSFY 0.55%) is a France-based video game publisher that's best known for franchises including Assassin's Creed, Rainbow Six, and Ghost Recon. Underperformance for some recent releases and weakened outlooks for some upcoming games have weighed on the company's share price, but Ubisoft still has big rebound potential. The company's share price is down roughly 37% from its 52-week high, and investors could score big wins with the stock if they're willing to embrace some uncertainty.
With a market capitalization of roughly $8.2 billion and the company guiding for adjusted operating income of roughly $543.5 million this year, Ubisoft is a growth stock that also looks attractive from a value perspective, and a single new hit release or promising new franchise in the pipeline could send its valuation soaring. The company hasn't matched the output quality of competitors including Activision Blizzard and Take-Two Interactive in recent years, but Ubisoft has some strong properties to work with alongside proven development and marketing teams.
The video game industry has always been a hit-driven business. Even as major publishers have pivoted to software models that prioritize in-game purchases from players and moved the overall industry closer to the games-as-a-service model, companies like Ubisoft rely on new hits to supercharge sales and earnings. The good news for investors is that it's well within the realm of possibility that the publisher will deliver a major new hit within the next several years.
On the heels of Activision Blizzard's recent success with expanding the Call of Duty franchise to a free-to-play model on mobile, PCs, and consoles, Ubisoft is pursuing a similar direction with its upcoming release slate. If the French games publisher can make more significant inroads in the F2P mobile market, sentiment on the stock could change quickly -- and in a big way.
