The stock market has been in a resurgent mood over the past month, as is evident from the 8% rally in the S&P 500 index.
The broad market rally has rubbed off positively on technology stocks as well, with the tech-laden Nasdaq-100 Technology Sector Index surging 16% in the past month. The tech stock rally isn't surprising, as major companies in this sector have reported solid earnings in recent weeks. Not surprisingly, the likes of Apple (AAPL -2.19%), Qualcomm (QCOM -0.85%), and Tesla (TSLA -5.59%) have appreciated strongly of late.
It won't be surprising to see these companies sustain their impressive rallies in the long run thanks to a bunch of serious catalysts, which is why investors may want to put $1,000 in these growth stocks before they fly higher. Let's look at the reasons why Apple, Qualcomm, and Tesla are the ultimate growth stocks to buy right now.
Sunny smartphone prospects make Apple and Qualcomm solid long-term bets
The smartphone market has not been in the best shape this year. Smartphone shipments were down 8.9% year over year in the first quarter of 2022, according to IDC, on account of weak demand. The second-quarter decline was nearly identical at 8.7% year over year.
However, Apple and Qualcomm have done well despite the slowdown in smartphone sales, as is evident from their latest results. Apple released fiscal 2022 third-quarter results (for the three months ending on June 25, 2022) on July 28. The company's revenue was up 2% year over year to a record $83 billion, driven by a favorable showing from iPhone sales.
Apple's iPhone revenue was up 3% over the prior-year period to $40.7 billion, accounting for nearly half of the company's sales. The company reportedly increased its iPhone shipments by 3.3% year over year to 47.5 million units, according to Strategy Analytics. That's impressive considering the weak smartphone sales environment.
Apple was able to beat the slowdown on the back of robust demand from emerging markets and easing supply chain bottlenecks. Management believes that it is able to attract more users from the Android ecosystem toward the iPhone, which isn't surprising given Apple's move to launch a budget-conscious 5G iPhone.
More importantly, Apple seems to be in a solid position to grow its smartphone sales in the long run, given its 31%-plus share of the 5G space. The 5G smartphone market is expected to grow at an annual pace of nearly 130% through 2027, and Apple could continue to command a solid share of the same. This could supercharge the company's growth in the long run and send the stock higher.
Qualcomm is another company that's beating the smartphone slowdown. The chipmaker released fiscal 2022 third-quarter results (for the three months ending June 26, 2022) on July 27, posting a 37% year-over-year increase in revenue to $10.9 billion and a 54% spike in adjusted earnings to $2.96 per share.
Qualcomm's revenue from sales of chips used in handsets increased a whopping 59% over the prior year to $6.1 billion, accounting for a big chunk of the company's overall sales. Wall Street, however, was disappointed with Qualcomm's guidance. The chipmaker expects $11.4 billion in revenue in the current quarter along with adjusted earnings of $3.15 per share at the midpoint of its guidance range. That's lower than the consensus expectation of $3.30 per share in earnings and $12 billion in sales.
Still, Qualcomm's revenue is on track to increase 22% year over year at the midpoint. The company had reported $2.55 per share in earnings in the prior-year period, which means that its bottom line would jump 23% year over year.
Qualcomm's solid share of the smartphone application processor market and the radio-frequency (RF) front-end module space indicate that the company is built for long-term growth. Qualcomm controlled 28% of the smartphone application processor market in the first half of 2022, according to Counterpoint Research. Its share of the RF front-end space is expected to hit 20% this year.
These are big opportunities for Qualcomm. The RF front-end market is expected to generate $21 billion in revenue by 2026 as compared to $17 billion last year, driven by the growing adoption of 5G devices that require more RF content. The smartphone application processor market was worth nearly $31 billion last year, growing 23% over the prior year, and Qualcomm's solid share of this space gives it an opportunity to tap into yet another fast-growing opportunity.
Not surprisingly, analysts expect Qualcomm's earnings to grow at an annual rate of 14% for the next five years. The company also sports a solid dividend yield of 2% along with a low payout ratio. So, investors can get a nice mix of stock upside and dividend income from Qualcomm in the long run.
Tesla is tearing ahead in the electric vehicle market
Tesla is winning big from the growing adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). This was evident from the company's second-quarter results that were released on July 20. The company's top line jumped 42% year over year to $16.9 billion, while non-GAAP net income was up 57% to $2.27 per share thanks to fatter margins.
Analysts expect Tesla to maintain its impressive growth in the long run. Its earnings are forecast to increase at 45% a year for the next five years. Tesla can hit such impressive growth targets in the long run, since it reportedly controls more than 70% of the EV market in the U.S., and has been taking steps to increase its production capacity across the globe.
The company expects to produce 1.5 million vehicles this year. In the long run, Tesla aims to increase its annual vehicle deliveries by an average of 50%, so it is not surprising to see why the company is focused on ramping up production capacity at a nice clip. The company has raised its capital spending forecast for 2022 to a range of $6 billion to $8 billion, compared to the earlier range of $5 billion to $7 billion.
All this explains why Tesla's business is expected to boom in the future. So, investors looking to take advantage of the EV boom should consider going long on Tesla before this growth stock soars higher and becomes more expensive.
