Remember March 2020? Back then, most people wanted no part of the stock market. COVID-19 had jest been designated a pandemic, travel at all levels was grinding to a halt, and major stock indexes were in a deep dive.
But those who kept their heads, invested money in a Nasdaq Composite index fund, and patiently waited saw a big reward less than a year later: Their investment had doubled in value. Between March 20, 2020, and Feb. 12, 2021, the index posted a 105% gain.
Today, opportunities can again be found with the Nasdaq Composite trading down 24% year to date and many individual stocks down much further. There's no guarantee of a one-year doubling this time around, but there is definitely potential for solid returns. Let's look at three growth stocks that I think are destined to double from current valuations.
1. Snowflake
Snowflake (SNOW 2.69%) went public in 2020 and is led by Frank Slootman, who formerly was chairman of enterprise software giant ServiceNow. Snowflake's signature product is Data Cloud, which helps customers aggregate all of their data in a central location, allowing them to innovate, achieve efficiencies, and gain insights into their business.
It's still early days for the company, which has only $1.4 billion in revenue over the last 12 months, but its revenue and customer base are growing rapidly. Fiscal 2023 first-quarter revenue was up 85% year over year; total customers surged to more than 6,000.
Investors are taking notice. Warren Buffett is a believer; his Berkshire Hathaway owns over 6 million shares of Snowflake, worth around $875 million.
Analysts expect Snowflake to continue growing for years. According to Wall Street, revenue should rise 66% this year and 53% the following year.
With a forecast for that much growth, Snowflake stock could easily double its value in the next few years.
2. Alphabet
There are plenty of reasons to like Alphabet (GOOG 1.25%) (GOOGL 1.27%) right now, like its attractive price/earnings-to-growth ratio, its recent stock split, and its impressive share of the digital ad market.
And there's Alphabet's tremendous growth rate for a company of its size. Quarterly revenue is up around 20% year over year.
The company produced $277 billion of revenue over the last 12 months, putting it eighth among U.S. companies, and closing in on ExxonMobil, CVS, and UnitedHealth Group.
And Wall Street thinks Alphabet can keep the growth going for years to come. Consensus estimates are for revenue increases of 14% annually for the next five years.
3. Zoetis
My third stock destined to double is Zoetis (ZTS 2.76%), a veterinary drugmaker. It produces pharmaceuticals for livestock and companion animals.
Roughly two-thirds of sales are from its companion-animals segment. Revenue from this part of the business is also growing faster, around 20% year over year.
The company is well positioned to benefit from the long-term growth of the pet market. Morgan Stanley estimates that overall pet spending in the U.S. will more than double to $275 billion by 2030. With over half (66%) of U.S. households owning a pet, according to Morgan Stanley's research, and nearly half (47%) of respondents saying that they treat their pets like they treat their child, the amount spent on pet healthcare is certain to rise in the coming years.
Wall Street expects Zoetis to profit from this trend. The company already has a robust operating margin of 36%, and a solid return on equity of 47%. Analysts anticipate it will grow earnings by 11% annually over the next five years.
As it rides the tailwinds of increased pet spending, I think Zoetis could easily double over the next five to 10 years.
