After starting the year off on the wrong foot, these two growth stocks have been in recovery mode over the last month. The stock prices of Airbnb (ABNB 0.71%) and The Trade Desk (TTD 4.12%) are each up more than 20% in that time frame.
Let's look closer at a few details about these two red-hot growth stocks that make each excellent potentially excellent investment for 2022 and beyond.
ABNB data by YCharts
1. Airbnb is recovering from the pandemic and now is a more robust business
Airbnb was devastated at the pandemic's onset, when worldwide travel effectively screeched to a halt. Global spending on travel fell to $610 billion in 2020, down from $1.5 trillion in 2019. For Airbnb, revenue fell by 30%, from $4.8 billion to $3.4 billion in that same time frame.
Fortunately, the world has made progress in its battle against COVID-19. Several effective vaccines and treatments have been developed and administered worldwide. With a growing arsenal to combat the potentially deadly virus, governments have felt comfortable removing business restrictions and allowing populations to travel more freely.
As a result, worldwide travel rebounded in 2021 to $950 billion in spending from $610 billion in 2020. Airbnb recovered even faster than the industry overall and revenue at Airbnb increased by 77.4% in 2021.
Recall that Airbnb does not own any of the properties listed on its platform. And because its website is populated with listings from its millions of hosts, it offers an unrivaled selection. Consumers prefer to have options and are voting with their dollars. That can explain why Airbnb is growing faster than its industry. And fortunately for potential investors, Airbnb stock can still be purchased near its lowest valuation.
ABNB Price to Free Cash Flow data by YCharts
2. The Trade Desk is benefiting from a rise in digital advertising
The Trade Desk helps companies buy digital advertising. Since consumers have been spending more of their time online, companies have been shifting more of their spending to digital channels. From 2019 to 2021, digital's share of overall advertising increased from 52.1% to 64.4%. As an added benefit, digital advertising is more efficient.
The trend has undoubtedly helped The Trade Desk's revenue explode from $114 million in 2015 to $1.2 billion in 2021. The direction is unlikely to reverse. If anything, consumers are likely to spend even more time on connected devices, causing advertisers to move their spending to channels with more opportunities to gain the attention of buyers.
In 2021, advertisers spent $763 billion globally. The Trade Desk is still a tiny fraction of the overall industry and can grow to take a larger share of this massive, expanding market. In the last year, The Trade Desk's top 25 advertisers increased their spending on the platform by 50%. The boost is evidence that it is delivering excellent returns on investment to its advertiser clients, and it could indicate further growth in the years ahead.
TTD Price to Free Cash Flow data by YCharts
Like Airbnb, The Trade Desk is trading near its historically low price-to-free cash flow ratio. The excellent long-term prospects and bargain prices make Airbnb and The Trade Desk red-hot growth stocks to buy in 2022.
