While growth stocks have been among the hardest hit in a notably volatile market, many of these companies remain popular choices with long-term investors. Not all growth stocks are created equal, and share price alone -- either one that has shot up or contracted in the current market -- shouldn't induce you to buy or sell. 

Instead, you should train your focus on the underlying business, which should not only have a clear growth story but align with the personal investment philosophy you're building your portfolio around. Today, we're going to look at two profitable, cash-rich businesses you may want to consider pressing the buy button on the next time you go shopping for stocks. 

1. Airbnb 

Airbnb (ABNB 0.75%) has built a business around the ever-shifting nature of travel. With a platform that features more than 7 million active listings and counting as of the end of the last quarter (an increase of 19% from just one year ago) in well over 200 countries, travelers can find just about any kind of booking to fit their specific interests and needs.

The popularity of flexible travel options that diverge from the traditional hotel stay was well on the rise before the pandemic. The worst of the pandemic period heightened the adoption of remote and hybrid work though, a dynamic that has had an impact on a myriad of industries, including travel.  

While remote work patterns have shifted since the time of stay-at-home orders, there's no denying that there's been a decided shift toward this newer version of the work-life balance. People aren't just using Airbnb for vacations but for a much wider range of stay types, including to live and work for extended periods of time away from home.

As of the second quarter, 18% of all bookings on Airbnb are for long-term stays of 28 days or more. Those travel bookings aren't from your average leisure travelers. To make that point again, nights booked for stays of three months or longer on Airbnb totaled 25% of all monthly stays as of June.  

In a day and age where the travel industry is more competitive than ever and consumer wallets are tightening, Airbnb has taken steps to make stays on the platform more affordable, including enhanced payment options and discounted service fees for long-term stays. At the time of its Q2 earnings report, roughly 50% of new active listings offered a monthly discount on long-term stays.

The company also launched Airbnb Rooms in its Summer 2023 Release, a new category of stays where the average cost of one night is just $67. Not only is that less than half of the average daily rate of an Airbnb stay ($166), but it's also considerably below what many hotels would charge for a single night.

Airbnb's profits shot up 72% year over year in Q2 to $650 million. It raked in free cash flow of $900 million too, a whopping 644% increase from the same quarter four years ago. Airbnb's competitive advantages are its asset-light, innovative platform, and global network of hosts and guests from which it derives consistent revenue and profits without actually owning or managing the properties it lists.

Even a small position in this travel stock could pay off over the long run.  

2. Chewy 

Chewy (CHWY 2.99%) is continuing to demonstrate that the popularity of online pet spending isn't over, even if the spree of pet adoptions that occurred during the doldrums of the pandemic has slowed down. In fact, it's estimated that U.S. pet owners will spend about $144 billion on their furry friends in 2023 alone, according to data from the American Pet Products Association.  

The beauty of Chewy's business model is manifold. For one, Chewy operates completely online, so absent the headache and stifling overhead costs of brick-and-mortar stores. In addition to that, it has a very diverse lineup of businesses beyond traditional pet items, of which it still offers thousands of private labeled as well as branded products. Chewy has its own online pet pharmacy, its own branded supplements line, and a pet telehealth service, to name a few such business segments. 

Chewy also controls its fulfillment network, a genius strategy that not only allows it to keep a more watchful eye on costs but ensure a better customer service experience. The key to Chewy's fulfillment network is its burgeoning collection of automated fulfillment centers. The company is on track to open its fifth automated fulfillment center in 2024.  

In terms of Chewy's financials, these continue to go from strength to strength. The company reported $2.8 billion in net sales in Q2, a 14% jump from the prior-year period. It raked in profits of $19 million, while free cash flow for the quarter totaled around $101 million. Trailing-12-month profits currently sit at around $50 million. Chewy also closed out the quarter with a cash and investment stash of nearly $1 billion ($905 million to be exact).

The market has been tough on this stock in recent months as fears about consumer spending patterns and worries about the pet industry as a whole persist. Still, over the long term, people are going to keep spending money on their pets. More than 20 million U.S. pet owners shop on Chewy on a regular basis, roughly one-quarter of the pet-owning populace in the country. The company is about to expand into Canada, another multibillion-dollar market opportunity.

Investors may have to have patience with this stock, but it doesn't look like there's cause to give up the ship by a longshot.