If you've got $1,000 available to start investing that isn't needed for monthly bills, to pay down short-term debt, or to bolster an emergency fund, buying some solid growth stocks across sectors can be a good place to start building a portfolio.
Let's look at three growth stocks to buy right now.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Nvidia
If you're looking for a way to play the artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure boom, Nvidia (NVDA 1.55%) is still a great choice. The company's graphics processing units (GPUs) are the main chips used to power AI workloads, and through its networking portfolio, it now offers customers end-to-end solutions for their AI data center needs.
While Nvidia is beginning to see more competition from AI ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits), its GPUs still hold distinct advantages. ASICs are custom chips that are hardwired for specific tasks and are less adaptable to a rapidly evolving tech landscape. ASICs also tend to require longer development cycles and often necessitate significant code redesigns from one generation to the next.
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
Nvidia's CUDA software platform, on the other hand, has years of AI libraries and tools built on top of it to optimize the performance of its chips, especially for training large language models (LLMs). Meanwhile, its proprietary NVLink interconnect system can help its chips function as a single, powerful unit, further enhancing their performance.
While Nvidia ultimately won't be able to maintain its absolutely massive market share forever, it will still get more than its fair share of the AI infrastructure spending pie, making it a top growth stock to invest in.
2. Amazon
Amazon (AMZN 1.52%) is a great combination of consumer goods and tech growth stock rolled into one. The company is seeing solid retail revenue growth, but more importantly, its investments in AI and robotics have led to strong operating leverage, with e-commerce profitability surges. This could be seen last quarter, when its North American segment's operating income jumped 28% year over year on an 11% increase in revenue.
NASDAQ: AMZN
Key Data Points
On top of that, the company sees revenue growth in its cloud computing unit, Amazon Web Services (AWS), beginning to accelerate. Demand for data center computing power and AI services is soaring, and Amazon is spending aggressively to meet growing demand. It's still ramping up its huge Project Rainier data center, which it built for Anthropic using its own custom AI chips, and it recently agreed to a seven-year, $38 billion deal with OpenAI to supply it with compute power using Nvidia GPUs.
Between accelerating cloud revenue growth and strong e-commerce operating leverage, Amazon is well-positioned for 2026 and beyond, making it a top stock to buy today.
3. Dutch Bros
One of the top growth stocks in the consumer space is Dutch Bros (BROS 6.67%). The coffee shop operator offers a strong combination of same-store sales drivers and expansion opportunities that make it one of the most attractive growth stories in the market today.
The company is seeing robust comparable-store growth, led by the introduction of mobile ordering, increased brand awareness marketing, and new drink introductions. Meanwhile, the company has a big opportunity in front of it, as it rolls out hot food items to approximately 75% of its locations that can support this initiative. In early tests, pilot stores saw a 4% lift in sales from these hot items. Given that rival Starbucks gets around 20% of its sales from food, this is a large opportunity.
NYSE: BROS
Key Data Points
At the same time, Dutch Bros has a huge expansion runway still in front of it. At the end of last quarter, it had fewer than 1,100 locations, with a goal of reaching 2,029 stores by 2029. Longer term, it thinks it can support as many as 7,000 locations in the U.S.
Its shops tend to be small, with no indoor seating and primarily served through drive-thru windows, giving it quick payback times on its investment spending. Importantly, this allows its new store expansion to be fully funded through its free cash flow, lessening the risk of this powerful growth story.
