3 Growth Stocks That Could Skyrocket in 2024 and Beyond @themotleyfool #stocks $CRM $SNOW $PATH

Sep 15, 2024 at 1:19 PM

Unlock Your Investment Potential: 3 Soaring Software Stocks to Elevate Your Portfolio

In the ever-evolving world of investing, the search for growth stocks that can propel your portfolio to new heights is a constant pursuit. This article delves into three software companies that possess the potential to deliver remarkable returns, offering investors a chance to capitalize on the dynamic and rapidly expanding technology landscape.

Unleash Your Wealth: Discover the Software Superstars Poised to Skyrocket

Snowflake: Harnessing the Power of Data Analytics

Snowflake (SNOW) has emerged as a trailblazer in the software-as-a-service (SaaS) arena, offering a cutting-edge platform that enables organizations to seamlessly integrate and analyze disparate data sets. Despite recent market volatility, Snowflake's fundamentals remain robust, showcasing its ability to drive consistent revenue growth and impressive free cash flow generation.Over the past three fiscal years, Snowflake has demonstrated its prowess, with revenue more than doubling from $1.2 billion in fiscal 2022 to a projected $2.8 billion in fiscal 2024. Equally impressive is the company's gross profit trajectory, which has soared from $760.9 million to an estimated $1.9 billion during the same period, accompanied by a remarkable expansion in gross margin from 62.4% to 68%.The software giant's free cash flow has also experienced a remarkable transformation, skyrocketing from $81.1 million in fiscal 2022 to a projected $778.9 million in fiscal 2024. This financial strength underscores Snowflake's ability to generate sustainable and scalable growth, even in the face of market turbulence.Snowflake's impressive performance has continued into the current fiscal year, with revenue rising 30.8% year-over-year to $1.7 billion and gross profit improving by 30.7% to $1.1 billion in the first half of the fiscal year. Free cash flow also saw a healthy 11% increase to $390.4 million during this period.The company's remaining performance obligations (RPO), a key indicator of future revenue, have climbed by an impressive 47% year-over-year to $5.2 billion, signaling a robust pipeline of growth opportunities. Furthermore, Snowflake's customer base has expanded significantly, with the total customer count jumping 47.8% year-over-year to 5,231, and the number of customers contributing more than $1 million in product revenue increasing from 399 to 510 over the same period.Looking ahead, Snowflake's management believes that its total addressable market will more than double from $152 billion in 2023 to $342 billion by 2028, providing ample room for the company to continue its impressive growth trajectory. Despite the recent stock price decline of 40% year-to-date, Snowflake's shares are trading at a relatively attractive price-to-sales ratio of just 11.1, offering a compelling entry point for investors with a long-term perspective.

Salesforce: Revolutionizing Customer Relationship Management

Salesforce (CRM) has established itself as a dominant force in the customer relationship management (CRM) software market, leveraging the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to deliver cutting-edge analytics, tools, and insights to its clients.The company's financial performance has been nothing short of impressive, with total revenue climbing from $26.5 billion in fiscal 2022 to a projected $34.9 billion in fiscal 2024. Even more remarkable is the surge in operating income, which has skyrocketed nearly tenfold from $548 million to $5 billion over the same period. Net income has also nearly tripled, from $1.4 billion to $4.1 billion, while free cash flow has climbed from $5.3 billion to $9.5 billion.This momentum has continued into the first half of the current fiscal year, with revenue rising 9.5% year-over-year to $18.5 billion and operating income increasing by 85% to $3.5 billion. Net income has doubled year-over-year to $3 billion, and free cash flow has grown by 40% to $6.8 billion.Salesforce's growth story is further bolstered by its recent announcement of a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, providing shareholders with a steady stream of income. Moreover, the company's management projects that its total addressable market will grow at a robust 13% annual rate from 2022 to 2026, reaching an impressive $290 billion, offering ample opportunities for Salesforce to expand its market share and continue its impressive financial performance.To enhance its offerings, Salesforce has made strategic acquisitions, such as the recent purchase of Own Company, a provider of data protection and management solutions, for approximately $1.9 billion. This acquisition is aimed at strengthening the security and availability of customers' data, further solidifying Salesforce's position as a trusted partner in the CRM space.Furthermore, the company has unveiled Agentforce, a suite of autonomous AI agents designed to assist employees in handling routine tasks across various business functions, including service, sales, marketing, and commerce. These software enhancements are expected to improve customer stickiness and drive continued growth in the number of customers and their spending.Despite its strong fundamentals, Salesforce's stock has remained relatively flat year-to-date, presenting a potential opportunity for investors to capitalize on the company's long-term growth potential.

UiPath: Automating the Future with Robotic Process Automation

UiPath (PATH) is a unique player in the AI landscape, offering a platform that provides robotic process automation (RPA) solutions to help organizations streamline and automate repetitive tasks. While the company has faced some corporate shake-ups, with the resignation of its CEO and the reappointment of Daniel Dines, its underlying business has continued to demonstrate steady growth.From fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2024, UiPath's revenue has increased from $892.3 million to a projected $1.3 billion, while gross profit has risen from $723.4 million to $1.1 billion. Although the company experienced negative free cash flow in the first two of those fiscal years, it managed to turn positive in fiscal 2024, generating $291.7 million in free cash flow.This positive momentum has carried over into the first half of fiscal 2025, with revenue climbing nearly 13% year-over-year to $651.4 million and gross profit increasing by 10% to $532.8 million. Free cash flow also saw a 32% year-over-year rise to $143.8 million.To further enhance its platform, UiPath has unveiled new features that incorporate generative AI, including UiPath Autopilot, which is designed to assist software developers and streamline software testing processes. These innovative additions to the company's offerings are expected to increase customer loyalty and attract new clients, as evidenced by the growth in customers with more than $100,000 in annual recurring revenue, which jumped from 1,930 to 2,163 in the latest quarter.During UiPath's 2022 Investor Day, the company's management projected a total addressable market of $93.2 billion, providing a substantial opportunity for the business to continue its growth trajectory. Despite the recent 50% year-to-date decline in its stock price, investors should remain optimistic about UiPath's long-term prospects, as the company's unique RPA solutions and its ability to adapt to the evolving technological landscape position it for potential success.