Market Plunge 2022: 3 Absolute Bargains Begging to Be Bought

The stock market has gotten crushed in 2022. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index has plunged 28% year to date, even after the largely positive week of trading on July 20-24.

This drop has brought shares of a few companies down to extremely appealing levels. Apple (AAPL -1.22%), Coupang (CPNG -1.30%), and Airbnb (ABNB -3.18%) have all fallen to the point where shares are begging to be bought, and with these three stocks, investors should consider doing just that. 

1. Apple

Apple might not excite many investors because of its $2.25 trillion market cap, especially considering its saturation in the smartphone space. Some estimates put Apple's Q1 2022 smartphone market share in North America at a staggering 51%, which leaves little room for growth.

However, Apple's potential isn't tapped out. Its wearables division has the opportunity to increase the value of its watches for consumers, which could dramatically boost demand and revenue. One way Apple is doing this is by integrating health features into the Watch. The tech titan already has heart rate, blood oxygen, and fall-detection monitors on its current Watches, but it could offer non-invasive blood glucose and sleep tracking features in the future.

Considering Apple's wearables division represented only 9% of total revenue in its second fiscal quarter, which ended March 26, 2022, there's a lot of room to grow this segment if these features can improve the value and demand for its wearables. 

That alone could be appealing, but you're also buying one of the strongest businesses in history. The company generated $102 billion in net income and $106 billion in free cash flow over the trailing 12 months. This jaw-dropping profitability has fueled continued leadership in the smartphone and computer industries while funding its growth opportunities, and there's even enough left over for a dividend and stock repurchases.

At 22.5 times earnings, Apple is trading at its lowest valuation since early 2020. At this price, you might regret not buying this dominant behemoth.

2. Coupang

Coupang is the top dog in the South Korean e-commerce space, and with over 18.1 million active customers in Q1, roughly 35% of the South Korean population uses Coupang. This has led to great success for the e-commerce business: It generated over $5.1 billion in revenue in Q1.

However, shares have tumbled almost 75% since Coupang's IPO in early 2021, bringing its price-to-sales ratio down to a bargain 1.1. This stunning drop is likely because the company struggles with profitability and cash flow. In Q1, for example, Coupang posted a loss of $209.3 million and free cash flow burn of $294 million. This is caused partially by the low-margin business of first-party e-commerce sales. In Q1, the company's gross margin was a measly 20%, but it is improving steadily. 

However, this selling might have been overdone. Coupang has almost $3.7 billion in cash on the balance sheet to fund these losses, and the e-commerce space in South Korea is still a large pond to fish in. Expectations put total e-commerce spending in the country in 2025 at $291 billion, leaving room for Coupang to flourish. At this multiple, the company could be an amazing investment if it can maintain its dominance as the space expands.

3. Airbnb

Like Coupang, Airbnb is trading at an intriguing multiple of just 22 times free cash flow. Traditional hospitality stocks like Marriott International and Hilton Worldwide comparatively trade above 32 times free cash flow.

One might expect Airbnb to be floundering given this cheap valuation, but its financial performance is near all-time highs. In Q1 2022, Airbnb reported a record 102 million nights and experiences booked, which soared 59% year over year. This bolstered the company's cash flows: In the same period, Airbnb generated $1.2 billion in free cash flow and lost only $19 million.

A potential culprit for shares falling more than 42% year to date is the fear of inflation and a possible recession impacting travel in the back half of 2022. According to a report from the U.S. Travel Association, 59% of Americans said that gas prices would impact their vacation plans, yet travel spending surpassed 2019 levels for the first time since the start of the pandemic. Therefore, while demand might drop slightly if gas prices continue to rise, travel spending will likely remain very high this summer. 

As one of the leading platforms to book unique stays for your vacation, Airbnb is likely to capitalize on this. It also has more than 6 million active listings, so the chances that Airbnb will run low on supply are slim, too. With the stock trading so low today and the company having such a large opportunity ahead -- both over the short and long term -- it is worth buying shares for the long haul.