After a terrible 2022, the Nasdaq has come roaring back in 2023.
Even as the economy continues to teeter on the edge of a recession and stocks are still in a bear market, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has bounced back and is the best-performing of the three major indexes so far this year, up more than 17% year to date.
In April the index traded flat as fears of a recession offset better-than-expected earnings reports from big tech stocks, but some top Nasdaq stocks jumped double digits.
Keep reading to see the three top-performing stocks from the Nasdaq-100 in April to see if any of them are worth buying.
1. Intuitive Surgical (up 17% in April)
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG 0.30%), the medical device company known for its da Vinci robotic surgical system, was the top-performing stock on the Nasdaq-100 in April, powered by a strong first-quarter earnings report.
In its first-quarter earnings report, Intuitive Surgical beat estimates on the top and bottom lines, and raised its guidance for procedure growth from 12%-16% to 18%-21%. Revenue in the quarter increased by 14% to $1.7 billion, and global da Vinci procedures grew by 26%.
Intuitive Surgical also benefits from its razor-and-blade model, as it now has an installed base of nearly 7,800 systems globally, and those customers need to purchase new components to keep using the system. As a result, the company's operating margin has expanded to 23% in the quarter.
Intuitive Surgical is a longtime winner on the stock market, up 400% in the last decade and more than 14,000% since its IPO. The company still retains its competitive advantage thanks to the razor-blade model and its technology, making the stock a good bet to continue outperforming, though shares do look pricey currently.
2. Meta Platforms (up 13.4%)
Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META -0.65%) has surged after plunging for much of 2022. In fact, the stock has more than doubled since it bottomed out last October as the company has committed to reining in costs, announcing two rounds of layoffs, and it said that monetization is improving at Reels, its short-form video product designed to compete with TikTok.
Meta stock also jumped on its first-quarter earnings report after the social media giant posted better-than-expected revenue in the first quarter. Adjusted earnings per share would have been nearly flat with the quarter a year ago adjusting for the restructuring losses related to layoffs.
While its metaverse project, Reality Labs, still remains a significant drag on its profits, the company is gaining traction in a number of other initiatives like Reels and AI, and it continues to grow its user base at both Facebook and across its other social media properties, showing its product continues to gain relevance even while conventional wisdom claims Facebook as a product is past its prime.
The stock is still trading at a reasonable valuation, and the company looks set to return to profit growth, making now a good time to pick up shares.
3. CoStar Group (up 11.8%)
Real estate specialist CoStar Group (CSGP 0.02%) rounds out the top-three Nasdaq-100 performers from April, and like Meta and Intuitive Surgical, it also jumped on its earnings report.
The real estate industry has struggled over the past year as interest rates and transactions in both the residential and commercial markets have slowed significantly, but CoStar bucked those trends in its first-quarter earnings report.
Revenue in the quarter rose 13% to $584 million, driven by 20% growth in Apartments.com.
The company's expanded sales team delivered a 110% increase in net new bookings on Apartments.com and a 100% increase in bookings at LoopNet, its commercial real estate listings site.
As the company stepped up those investments in its sales force, adjusted earnings per share fell from $0.31 to $0.29. Yet the results beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines, and the company sees steady profits for the rest of the year.
CoStar stock is also expensive, but the company has carved out a leading position in real estate with valuable digital properties, and should see a jump in earnings when the real estate market bounces back.
