Sharp share price declines across the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the bellwether S&P 500 recently can be fear-inducing, but focusing on the long term when investing will help you through these periods. These declines should be viewed as a great opportunity to scoop up shares of companies that continue to display strong growth in preparation for the eventual recovery.
Inflation may be a concern right now, but businesses with a competitive moat and strong brands can continue to post healthy top-line growth despite economic headwinds. The key is selecting stocks with compelling catalysts that allow them to ride a sustainable trend. If you park $10,000 in several of these stocks now, they could multiply your money in a few years.
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Snowflake
Snowflake (SNOW 2.53%) offers a handy solution for businesses seeking to tap into voluminous amounts of data. It helps to organize this data into silos where clients can tap them for data-driven insights. The cloud-driven platform enables companies to share previously unavailable or proprietary data to gain a better understanding of it and how to analyze it. The data explosion has been undeniable as the pandemic drove more people online and forced numerous businesses to digitize, thus confirming a sustainable trend that should continue to power Snowflake's results.
For its fiscal 2022, ended Jan. 31, product revenue more than doubled year over year to $1.2 billion. This momentum continued into the first half of fiscal 2023 as Snowflake reported revenue of $919.6 million, up 83.5% over the year-ago period. Performance obligations remaining at the end of the second quarter of 2022 were up 78% to $2.7 billion.
The company's customer base is also expanding. Total customers rose 23% year over year for Q2, while customers bringing in more than $1 million in product revenue doubled to 246. Snowflake believes the cloud data platform industry has a $248 billion total addressable market that remains ripe for tapping for future growth.
Okta
For large organizations with thousands of staff members needing access to various applications and secure areas within the company's database, Okta (OKTA -0.65%) provides a valuable service. Demand for the identity management company's services is surging as more businesses head to the cloud.
For its fiscal 2022, ended Jan. 31, Okta's total revenue hit $1.3 billion, up 56% year over year, while billings surged by 76% to $1.72 billion. The strong momentum has carried over into the first half of fiscal 2023, where Okta logged revenue growth of 53% to $866.8 million.
The company expects fiscal 2023 revenue to come in at $1.8 billion, up nearly 40%. It's an impressive growth rate, considering the pandemic-driven surge in users has tapered off for many companies. Okta intends to continue improving its platform to attract new clients while expanding its use by existing ones to increase its revenue base.
The company also plans for international expansion, which makes up slightly more than a fifth of total revenue, to help grow its global presence. With a total addressable market of $80 billion, there's significant room for Okta to continue growing its highly-sought-after identity management solutions.
Zscaler
Zscaler (ZS 0.30%) operates the world's largest cloud security platform, ensuring its clients' data is protected against thieves and hackers. With the shift to the cloud, management teams have recognized the importance of data protection, which has created durable tailwinds for Zscaler's business.
The company has reported impressive revenue growth over its past four fiscal years. Total revenue has jumped from $190 million in fiscal 2018 (ended July 31) to $1.1 billion in the latest year, resulting in a compound annual growth rate of 55%.
With Zscaler's ability to securely connect users, devices, and apps over any network, the company provides a compelling proposition for clients to adopt its platform. Over the same four-year period, the number of customers providing annual recurring revenue exceeding $100,000 has nearly quadrupled from 511 to 2,089. What's more, Zscaler has also generated healthy free cash flow with annual billings growing by 59% year over year to $1.48 billion.
Investors have a lot to look forward to today. Zscaler has identified a serviceable market of $72 billion and more than 600 million potential business-to-business users, creating ample opportunities for the company to scale and grow its revenue base. The cybersecurity company also recently acquired workflow automation technology business ShiftRight, which should help Zscaler significantly reduce its incident resolution time.
All in all, Zscaler still has great potential ahead, especially when the tech sector begins to recover.
