Many investors might be wary of buying the hottest growth stocks as the market hovers just a few percentage points below its all-time highs. The threats of higher tariffs, rising inflation, and elevated interest rates could also cap their near-term gains.
But if we dig a bit deeper, we'll notice plenty of high-growth stocks still trading at reasonable valuations. I believe these three stocks -- Applied Digital (APLD 0.67%), AppLovin (APP 6.08%), and Reddit (RDDT 4.97%) -- could easily double a modest investment of $3,000 over the next few years.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Applied Digital
Applied Digital builds and buys large data centers, ensures they're properly powered, and rents those buildings to tenants that install their own servers. It initially rented those data centers to Bitcoin miners, but it pivoted toward the high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) markets in 2022.
NASDAQ: APLD
Key Data Points
That shift coincided with the explosive growth of the AI market, and its revenue soared 548% in fiscal 2023 (which ended in May 2023) and 199% in fiscal 2024. For fiscal 2025, analysts expect its revenue to rise 55% to $256 million.
With an enterprise value of $1.75 billion, it doesn't seem expensive at seven times this year's sales -- even though its stock has rallied about 90% over the past 12 months. Applied Digital is still unprofitable, and elevated interest rates could make it tougher to buy new data centers.
However, its profitability should improve over the next few years as interest rates decline and it locks in more tenants. Its stock could remain volatile this year, but it could easily double as the AI market keeps expanding.
2. AppLovin
AppLovin publishes its own apps and AI-powered app monetization tools for other companies. It expanded by buying other companies, including the mobile ad tech company MoPub and the connected TV advertising company Wurl, in recent years.
NASDAQ: APP
Key Data Points
AppLovin's revenue growth flatlined, and it posted a net loss in 2022 as it grappled with the macro headwinds across the advertising industry. But in 2023, its revenue grew 17%, and it turned profitable again. The recovery was driven by the stabilizing macro environment and the increased adoption of its AI-powered AXON ad-discovery services.
In 2024, AppLovin's revenue jumped 43% as its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) -- which tunes out the near-term noise from its recent acquisitions -- surged 81%. Its net income soared 343%. For 2025, analysts expect its revenue and adjusted EBITDA to rise 23% and 43%, respectively.
With an enterprise value of $112 billion, AppLovin still doesn't seem terribly expensive at 19 times this year's adjusted EBITDA. If it continues to lock more companies into its AI-driven advertising services, its stock could easily double within a few years.
3. Reddit
Reddit blends social media, online discussion, and news-aggregation features with its unique platform. From 2021 to 2024, its total number of year-end daily active unique users surged from 53.9 million to 101.7 million. During those three years, its revenue grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42% from $456 million to $1.3 billion.
NYSE: RDDT
Key Data Points
Much of that growth was driven by political events, major news stories, and the launches of popular TV shows, movies, and games. However, many users also increasingly used its platform as a search engine for human-driven discussions about various topics, and it further expanded its reach through partnerships with Alphabet's Google and OpenAI's ChatGPT.
From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect Reddit's revenue to rise at a CAGR of 32% as its adjusted EBITDA increases at a CAGR of 64%. With an enterprise value of $29 billion, Reddit might not seem cheap at 49 times this year's adjusted EBITDA. However, it could still have plenty of room to grow as it pulls more users away from the leading social media platforms and search engines.
