As stocks move past the bear market of 2022, hypergrowth tech shares have again gained the attention of investors. The mere forecast of a return to growth for Nvidia led to a record one-day gain in the company's market capitalization following its earnings.
While investors have bid Nvidia up to expensive levels, they can still buy other growth tech stocks at much more reasonable valuations. Investors looking for such growth might want to consider Shopify (SHOP +3.18%) or CrowdStrike (CRWD +1.37%).
Shopify
Shopify is an e-commerce stock ready to resume its rapid growth. The one-time highflier lost more than 85% of its value during the recent bear market. However, the stock has now climbed by over 150% from its 52-week low. The prospects for growth resuming in e-commerce are one reason why.
NASDAQ: SHOP
Key Data Points
The flexibility of its platform and an emphasis on speed have helped make it the No. 1 e-commerce platform in the U.S. Additionally, a growing merchant services segment is expanding its overall capabilities with payments, inventory management, and other areas.
Still, the latest growth spurt may have come largely from reducing the size of its ecosystem, with Shopify's sale of its fulfillment business to Flexport. While that fulfillment network could have given it a formidable competitive advantage, the buildout costs would have probably left Shopify with losses for several years.
With that burden now gone, Shopify's financials have improved dramatically. In the first quarter of 2023, revenue rose 25% yearly to $1.5 billion. Also, gains in its Global-E investments and its position in Affirm Holdings led to a surprise profit of $68 million. Moreover, free cash flow turned positive, coming in at $86 million, versus negative free cash flow of $41 million in the year-ago quarter.
But remember that, despite its advancements, Shopify has a long way to go before returning to its all-time high. Consequently, it sells at a price-to-sales ratio of 13, near historical lows. Given its increasing dominance within the sector, its decision not to build a fulfillment network could keep it going higher.
CrowdStrike
CrowdStrike has emerged as one of the leading cybersecurity stocks in an increasingly cloud-focused tech world. Its Falcon platform specializes in protecting endpoints, connections within a cloud network, and devices such as smartphones and laptops. It also stands out by identifying potential points of attack by crowdsourcing data, hence its name.
Moreover, the company has driven growth by offering other cybersecurity products to customers. As of the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2024 (which ended April 30), 62% of its customers adopted five or more modules.
These added modules helped keep its dollar-based net retention rate above 120%. This means that existing customers spent at least 20% more on the platform than one year ago. Additionally, in fiscal 2023 (ended Jan. 31), CrowdStrike retained 98% of its existing customers, a testament to the strength of the platform.
Revenue in the new fiscal first quarter rose 42% in one year on retention and customer additions, to $693 million. And thanks to nearly $31 million in interest income, CrowdStrike reported a net income of $499,000, up from a $32 million loss in the year-ago quarter.
NASDAQ: CRWD
Key Data Points
Like other cybersecurity stocks, CrowdStrike fell dramatically in the 2022 bear market, losing as much as 70% of its value. Still, it's come back from a near-term bottom in January, and its price-to-sales ratio of 15 is near historical lows. Considering that rapid growth, its march higher is likely to continue.
