While it has enjoyed an impressive rally this year, the Nasdaq Composite index remains down roughly 19% from its high, and is in danger of slipping back to the 20% decline level that would officially bring it back to bear-market territory. And even with some impressive rebound momentum in the broader market, there are some great growth stocks still trading down massively from the highs they reached in the last bull phase.
If you're on the hunt for top investment opportunities with huge growth potential, read on for a look at two beaten-down stocks that are worth buying today and holding for the long term.
Roblox's growth engine is heating up
Keith Noonan: Following some lumpy performance comparisons as the business lapped periods characterized by surging, pandemic-driven engagement, Roblox (RBLX 1.35%) is back to posting much stronger bookings and user-engagement growth. With its share price still down roughly 70% from the high that it reached in November 2021, now looks like an opportune time to build a position in the metaverse leader.
Total daily active users on Roblox's platform rose 22% year over year in the first quarter to hit 66.1 million, and total engagement hours increased 23% to hit 14.5 billion. While the company's bookings per user were flat compared to the prior-year quarter, user growth pushed overall bookings up 23% to reach $773.8 million. Sales, which typically lag behind bookings due to deferred revenue accounting, increased 22% year over year to hit $655.3 million.
While Roblox has already scaled rapidly and is serving up strong sales, the virtual-world innovator still has huge expansion potential and some powerful growth levers that it can pull. The company has just started to test out expanding its advertising system, and the ads side of the business has the potential to evolve into a big performance driver over the long term. With Roblox's platform seeing strong bookings growth from in-game purchases and premium memberships again, ramping up ads has the potential to take the metaverse player's growth engine to the next level.
While the company isn't posting profits yet, the company increased operating income 11% year over year to reach roughly $173.8 million, and it has approximately $2.1 billion in cash and equivalents net of debt. Roblox's return to strong engagement, bookings, and sales growth and strong financial position make the stock a worthwhile buy for investors seeking potentially explosive tech plays.
Netflix has weathered its most vigorous competition
Parkev Tatevosian: One of my favorite growth stocks to buy right now is Netflix (NFLX -0.63%). The streaming pioneer has withstood a stream (pardon the pun) of new competition relatively well. Admittedly, Netflix's growth has slowed, but that is arguably reflected in its relatively inexpensive stock price. What's more, it appears that competition among streaming rivals is easing, and the stock still trades down 45% from its high.
Indeed, Disney, one of its biggest competitors, has announced several rounds of price increases, content budget cuts, and reduced marketing behind its services. That's a good sign for Netflix, because consumers will look around and find higher prices everywhere. If consumers want streaming content, they will have to pay more. The opposite is bad news for investors, because price cuts and stiff competition lead to slimmer profits for streamers.
Netflix already delivered $5.6 billion in operating income in 2022 on revenue of $31.6 billion. Seeing those figures trend higher over the next several years would not surprise me. Overall, folks are canceling their cable and satellite subscriptions and moving to streaming content instead. That secular tailwind and milder competition bode well for the industry leader.
NFLX PE Ratio (Forward 1y) data by YCharts
To make a case for investing in Netflix more compelling, the stock is trading at an inexpensive forward price-to-earnings ratio of roughly 26. Investors may be unable to buy this excellent growth stock at this value for much longer.
Growth at the intersection of tech and media
While Roblox and Netflix have both enjoyed strong valuation gains across 2023's trading, both stocks still trade at big discounts compared to the highs reached in the last couple years. The market still seems to be underestimating their competitive strengths and expansion opportunities. For long-term investors, taking a buy-and-hold approach with these two promising growth stocks could have big payoffs.
