A month into the new year, the U.S. stock market continues to trade near all-time highs. Growth stocks have been leading the way, and that trend should continue. Let's look at three growth stocks to buy and hold for the long term.
Nvidia
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
Of all the artificial intelligence (AI) stocks, Nvidia (NVDA 3.41%) has arguably been the biggest beneficiary of the data center infrastructure buildout. The chipmaker has grown to become the world's largest company thanks to the unquenchable demand for its graphics processing units (GPUs) -- the primary chips powering the AI revolution. And while other rivals are trying to eat into its market share lead, Nvidia continues to have a wide moat not just due to the quality of its processors, but also thanks to its popular CUDA software platform, upon which most foundational AI code was written, as well as its networking portfolio.
With spending on AI data center construction continuing to expand, the company is in a good position to maintain strong growth over the long term. And with Nvidia trading at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of around 24.5, based on 2026 analysts' consensus estimates, the stock is attractively valued.
Image source: Getty Images.
Meta Platforms
NASDAQ: META
Key Data Points
Meta Platforms (META 3.24%) is one of the companies that has best adjusted to the new AI landscape, quickly adopting the technology to help drive its sales growth. It's using AI tools to increase the "stickiness" of its apps and keep users on them longer, as well as help the advertisers on its platforms better target and convert users. These strategies helped Meta achieve strong 24% revenue growth in Q4, as ad impressions climbed by 18% and it boosted its average ad price by 6%.
That ad momentum is expected to continue into 2026, with the social media company guiding for Q1 revenue growth to accelerate to between 26% and 34% year over year. Meanwhile, it is just beginning to serve ads on its popular WhatsApp messaging platform, which has over 3 billion users, as well as its newest social media site, Threads. Trading at a forward P/E ratio of around 23.5, the stock is attractively valued.
Amazon
NASDAQ: AMZN
Key Data Points
With a forward P/E of just over 25, e-commerce leader Amazon (AMZN 2.31%) is trading at a valuation below its chief retail peers, and it also benefits from its powerful and still-growing cloud computing business.
The company is seeing strong operating leverage in its e-commerce business thanks to its investments in robotics and AI. This has led to segment profit growth greatly outpacing revenue growth. Meanwhile, growth at its cloud unit, Amazon Web Services (AWS), is starting to accelerate again, and the company is spending big to support that trend. As a market share leader in two great businesses, Amazon is a company well worth investing in for the long haul.
