If you had invested $1,000 in Amazon stock 10 years ago, that investment position would now be worth nearly $10,000. Meanwhile, a $1,000 investment in Nvidia a decade ago would now be worth more than $265,000.
While investing in stocks typically comes with a much higher level of risk compared to bonds and other fixed-income investments, the potential for explosive returns is also much higher. With that in mind, read on to see why two Motley Fool contributors identified these two companies as top investment candidates to put $1,000 into right now.
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Micron stock stands out as a smart way to play AI trends
Keith Noonan (Micron Technology): Artificial intelligence (AI) is taking the world by storm, and it seems virtually certain that its transformative impacts are still in the very stages of unfolding. Along with software advances from a wide variety of players, it's likely that high-powered hardware from a smaller group of providers will continue to play a central role in pushing the technology forward.
Nvidia will likely continue to lead the high end of the graphics processing unit (GPU) technologies that help power advanced training and inference applications for AI, but it also looks like Advanced Micro Devices could be making some significant inroads in the space. While both of these processing specialists could be worth betting on, I think that investors should also take a close look at one of the key components providers for their most advanced hardware -- Micron Technology (MU 1.43%).
Micron is a designer and manufacturer of memory chips and storage solutions that's playing an important role in the AI revolution. While the company's business has historically revolved mostly around the consumer market, that's changed rapidly -- and memory chips used in GPUs, accelerators, and other hardware for data centers are now central to its growth story. The company's high-bandwidth memory (HBM) solutions are used by both Nvidia and AMD for advanced AI processors, and the demand outlook for these technologies is very promising.
In addition to being a pick-and-shovel play that should allow investors to benefit from rising demand for GPUs from Nvidia, AMD, and other players in the AI processors space, Micron could be poised to benefit from geopolitical trends. Due to rising tensions between the U.S. and China, leading domestic tech companies will likely be less inclined to rely on memory chips and storage solutions from Chinese providers.
In response, Micron is moving to dramatically ramp up chip fabrication and design capabilities in the U.S. With rising AI-related demand and geopolitical dynamics potentially taking some of the companies biggest competitors out of the equation, Micron stock looks like a strong investment right now.
A once-in-a-decade opportunity
Jennifer Saibil (MercadoLibre): If you could go back in time and invest $1,000 in Amazon when it was just getting started, would you? I can't imagine there's an investor out there who wouldn't answer, "Yes." Although that may be theoretical, you have a similar opportunity if you invest in MercadoLibre (MELI 0.03%) stock today.
MercadoLibre is an e-commerce powerhouse that only operates in Latin America. But it's the leader in its region, and it has incredible momentum, reporting high growth and profits, and it has massive long-term opportunities.
It's actually been around about as long as Amazon, but because it has a smaller market that's still underdeveloped, it has a long growth runway. Management says that e-commerce penetration in its regions lags the U.S. by about a decade at about 13% in its markets, while it's about 24% in the U.S. and 32% in China.
In the 2025 first quarter, gross merchandise volume increased 40% year over year (currency neutral). MercadoLibre is enjoying several growth drivers. It's attracting new users, and unique active visitors increased 25% year over year in the quarter. It's upgrading its logistics network to get orders to shoppers faster, and it's focusing on the grocery area, which has a high repeat purchase rate and increased 65% in the quarter. Engagement is increasing as more shoppers buy across more categories, and average purchase frequency is on the rise as well.
The company is also developing a formidable fintech business that was created to help its underbanked customers pay for e-commerce purchases. What began as a digital wallet that could be filled by paying cash in stores throughout its markets has become a full financial services app, including credit cards and investing tools. It's also aiming to open a complete digital bank in Mexico as a pilot. Fintech services are also growing at a rapid pace. Monthly active users increased 31% year over year in the first quarter to 64 million, and total payment volume (TPV) increased 72% over last year.
Assets under management more than doubled in the first quarter, and the credit portfolio increased 75%. In Brazil, one of its biggest markets, the traditional banking industry is already being disrupted, with incumbent banks' TPV on the decline, while challenger banks increase their TPV. This is a model that can be replicated in its other countries of operation as well.
Management is investing in other growth areas, too, such as digital advertising and ad-supported streaming as an innovative method to increase its brand presence.
MercadoLibre is beating the market this year, up 39%, as investors are prizing its protection against U.S. tariffs. But investors should buy it for its huge long-term opportunity.
