Many financial stocks endured wild swings over the past few years as interest rates spiked and fell. Rising rates throttled economic growth and drove many investors away from stocks, cryptocurrencies, and other riskier investments. While higher rates helped banks and other lenders collect higher interest payments, they also caused individuals and businesses to take out fewer loans.
But over the long term, many financial stocks should continue to rise as new investors enter the market and more unbanked individuals sign up for banking services. Let's take a look at three of those stocks that are worth buying today and holding forever with a modest $3,000 investment: Robinhood Markets (HOOD 1.71%), Nu Holdings (NU -0.72%), and Coinbase Global (COIN 9.17%).
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The disruptive brokerage: Robinhood
Robinhood, which was founded in 2013, attracted a lot of younger investors with its commission-free trades, streamlined mobile app, and gamified approach to investing. From 2021 to 2024, its number of year-end funded accounts rose from 22.7 million to 25.2 million, its assets under custody nearly doubled from $98 billion to $193 billion, and its annual revenue rose from $1.82 billion to $2.95 billion. It sells its trades to high-frequency trading (HFT) firms to subsidize its free trades.
Robinhood experienced a major growth spurt in 2020 and 2021 when the meme stock mania drew in millions of new investors. But its business cooled off in 2022 and 2023 as inflation and rising interest rates crushed many of those speculative investments.
But in 2024, Robinhood recovered as interest rates declined, investors rotated toward riskier growth stocks and cryptocurrencies again, and it expanded its ecosystem to include its Cash Card, subscription-based Gold tier, and a broader range of digital payment services.
From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect its revenue to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% as its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increases at a CAGR of 19%. With an enterprise value of $57.3 billion, it still doesn't look too expensive at 32 times this year's adjusted EBITDA -- and it should be a reliable long-term investment.
The digital bank: Nu Holdings
Nu, which operates in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia, owns the top online bank in Latin America. From 2021 to 2024, its number of year-end customers more than tripled from 33.3 million to 114.2 million, while its activity rate (its active customers as a ratio of its total customers) rose from 76% to 83%.
During those three years, its revenue grew at a CAGR of 89%. It also turned profitable in 2023 and its net income surged 91% in 2024.
As a digital-only bank, Nu expanded much faster than its brick-and-mortar competitors while locking in its customers with an increasing number of checking, credit card, lending, insurance, investment, cryptocurrency, e-commerce, and business-oriented services. It's also strengthening its ecosystem with more artificial intelligence (AI)-driven analytics tools, chatbots, and cybersecurity services.
More than a quarter of Latin America's population remains unbanked, according to Global Findex, which leaves Nu plenty of room to expand. From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect its revenue to rise at a CAGR of 32% as its net income increases at a CAGR of 38%. Those are stellar growth rates for a stock that trades at just 27 times this year's earnings.
The crypto exchange: Coinbase
Coinbase is one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges. It generates most of its revenue from its trading fees, so it experienced a severe slowdown in 2022 as rising rates chilled the market and unleashed a new "crypto winter." But even after riding out that downturn, its year-end assets on platform still increased from $278 billion in 2021 to $404 billion in 2024. A lot of that growth was driven by the approval of the first Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which used Coinbase as their primary custodian.
Coinbase's annual revenue still fell from $7.8 billion in 2021 to $6.6 billion in 2024, but analysts expect it to grow at a CAGR of 6.5% to $7.9 billion in 2027. Investors should take those estimates with a grain of salt, since they're tethered to the unpredictable crypto market, but they indicate its volatile business will gradually stabilize.
Its adjusted EBITDA is expected to dip from $3.35 billion in 2024 to $3.26 billion in 2027 as it ramps up its investments, but the expansion of its platform with more features -- including its smart wallets, tools for developing Ethereum-based decentralized apps, and its Coinbase One subscription plans -- could lock in more of its investors.
With an enterprise value of $60.8 billion, Coinbase isn't cheap at 8 times this year's sales. But it's outlasted other major exchanges like FTX, which collapsed in 2022, and its top competitor, Binance, is being scrutinized by regulators. So if you're bullish on the crypto market, Coinbase could still be a good "forever" stock -- as long as you can tune out the noise and stomach its near-term volatility.
