The stock market has turned in a forgettable performance in 2022 thanks to multiple headwinds. These range from surging inflation to the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes to macroeconomic headwinds and the possibility of a recession in 2023. However, recent trends suggest that the market could end the year on a high.

The S&P 500 has lost 17% of its value in 2022 so far, but the index has gained over 10% since the beginning of October. And now, Bank of America estimates that the stock market could witness a bull run in 2023 on account of cooling inflation that could drop to 4% by the middle of next year.

Inflation for October in the U.S. came in at 7.7%, down from 8.2% in September. If inflation keeps cooling and the Fed reduces the pace of interest rate hikes, it won't be surprising to see the stock market surge higher as 2022 ends and sustain the momentum in the new year.

Let's say you have $500 to spare right now -- which means you won't need that money for some time and have ample emergency funds. It may be a good idea to buy Shopify (SHOP 1.26%), Applied Materials (AMAT -0.16%), and Palo Alto Networks (PANW 1.43%), as they could soar higher in a bull market. Let's look at the reasons why.

1. Shopify

Shares of e-commerce platform provider Shopify have jumped roughly 40% since the beginning of October. The broader stock market recovery and the company's solid third-quarter results released at the end of last month have played a key role in boosting investors' confidence in the stock.

Analysts expect Shopify to finish 2022 with a 20% increase in revenue to $5.5 billion. The company's growth is expected to accelerate in 2023, with the top line expected to increase 21% to nearly $6.7 billion. What's more, Shopify's top line is estimated to jump to $8.4 billion in 2024, which would be an increase of 25% over next year's revenue forecast.

It is not surprising to see why analysts are upbeat about Shopify's growth in the next couple of years. The growing adoption of e-commerce has increased the demand for the company's merchant solutions, which allow merchants to build, manage, and operate their online presence. From offering online payment services to providing financing and managing shipping and fulfillment, Shopify has set itself up to take advantage of the fast-growing e-commerce technology space that's expected to add roughly $10.6 billion in revenue between 2020 and 2025.

And now, the company has bolstered its presence in the e-commerce fulfillment market with the acquisition of Deliverr, which it finalized in July this year. The $2.1 billion acquisition will boost the company's Shopify Fulfillment Network (SFN) business, as merchants will be able to manage inventory across multiple e-commerce platforms and even enable faster deliveries to customers.

The good part is that Deliverr is expanding rapidly. Its warehouse count increased to 80 in late 2021 from 30 in early 2020. By 2024, Deliverr is expected to have at least double the number of warehouses, and that could help Shopify gain more share in the U.S. e-commerce space and fulfill more than 10% of orders by gross market value.

All this indicates that Shopify's future appears bright, which is why investors looking for a fast-growing tech stock trading on the cheap may want to buy it before it runs higher. Shopify is trading at 8.9 times sales, a discount to last year's sales multiple of 41. In other words, investors are getting a good deal right now.

2. Applied Materials

Just like Shopify, Applied Materials stock has also found its footing in recent weeks, gaining 20% since the beginning of October. The company's better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 have helped fortify the bullishness.

Applied Materials' quarterly revenue increased 10% year over year to a record $6.75 billion, while adjusted earnings were up 5% to $2.03 per share. The numbers exceeded Wall Street's estimate of $1.73 per share in earnings on $6.45 billion in revenue. The company's annual revenue increased 12% year over year to $25.8 billion, while earnings jumped 13% to $7.70 per share.

The guidance for the first quarter of fiscal 2023 was also stronger than anticipated. Applied Materials forecasts $6.7 billion in revenue and $1.93 per share in earnings this quarter at the midpoint of its guidance range, exceeding the consensus estimate of $6.35 billion in revenue and $1.77 per share in earnings. The guidance indicates that Applied Materials' top and bottom lines are set to increase over the year-ago period's revenue of $6.27 billion and earnings of $1.89 per share.

The outlook also suggests that the supply chain challenges that weighed on its performance last year are easing. This should allow Applied Materials to fulfill more of its order backlog that stood at $19 billion at the end of last quarter, an impressive increase of 62% over the prior-year period. This healthy backlog, combined with an anticipated increase of 5.3% in wafer manufacturing capacity by chipmakers in 2023, means that the demand for Applied Materials' semiconductor manufacturing equipment should remain healthy.

As a result, it won't be surprising to see this semiconductor stock surprise analysts positively in 2023 and maintain its momentum. With Applied Materials stock trading at just 14 times trailing earnings -- a discount to the S&P 500's multiple of 19 -- it would be a good idea for investors to add $500 to this stock before it soars higher.

3. Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks has withstood the stock market sell-off in 2022 to a large extent, as its shares have lost just 8.5% of their value this year. It won't be surprising to see the company finish the year on a solid note following its robust results for the first quarter of fiscal 2023 (for the three months ending Oct. 31, 2022) released on Nov. 17.

Palo Alto's revenue shot up 25% year over year to $1.6 billion, while non-GAAP net income jumped 51% to $0.83 per share. The cybersecurity specialist gave investors a reason to cheer, as the numbers exceeded consensus estimates of $0.69 per share in earnings and $1.55 billion in revenue. The company's billings, which refers to amounts that haven't been recognized as revenue yet, increased at a faster pace of 27%, to $1.7 billion.

Palo Alto has also raised the higher end of its full-year guidance slightly and now expects revenue growth of 25% to 26% to a range of $6.85 billion to $6.91 billion. It was earlier anticipating $6.9 billion in revenue at the higher end. Adjusted earnings could increase to $3.41 per share from $2.52 per share last fiscal year, a jump of 35%.

More importantly, Palo Alto is in a terrific position to deliver the promised growth, as it was sitting on remaining performance obligations (RPO) worth $8.3 billion last quarter, an increase of 38% over the prior year. This metric is an indicator of a healthy revenue pipeline, as it refers to the total value of customer contracts in force that are yet to be fulfilled. The fact that Palo Alto's RPO grew at a faster pace than its actual revenue suggests that the demand for its cybersecurity solutions remains healthy.

All this makes Palo Alto stock a buy candidate for investors with $500 to spare, as the company is going into 2023 with momentum on its side, and its latest results and outlook suggest that it could sustain the same.