In this article, we will look at the 10 Best Stocks to Buy and Hold For 3 Years.
What to Expect From the Stock Market in 2025?
On December 12, Tom Lee, Fundstrat Global Advisors managing partner and head of research, joined CNBC’s ‘Closing Bell’ to discuss his playbook for 2025. Following two years of significant gains, his playbook suggests an optimistic yet cautious outlook for the stock market next year. Lee anticipates that the S&P 500 will rise to approximately 7,000 by mid-2025, before retreating to around 6,600 by the end of the year. This reflects an overall expected increase of about 8% for the year, which is consistent with historical averages for stock market returns. In terms of Earnings Per Share (EPS) estimates Lee projects EPS for the S&P 500 at $260 in 2025 while estimating $300 for 2026. This is slightly below the consensus estimates from Wall Street, which average around $268 for 2025.
READ ALSO: 11 Best Aerospace and Defense Stocks to Buy Right Now and 11 Best Computer Hardware Stocks to Invest in Right Now.
Explaining his investment thesis, Lee pointed towards several themes that could drive the market in 2025. He predicts a “tale of two halves,” where the first half of the year will see stronger market performance due to factors like Federal Reserve policies and business-friendly initiatives under President Trump. Conversely, he expects a pullback in the second half, reflecting historical trends after strong consecutive years. He sees potential in small-cap stocks, which have underperformed relative to large-cap stocks historically. Lee also talked about the mega caps that are leading. He mentioned that investors reach for these companies when there is even slight risk in the market. Secondly, mega-cap stocks are highly sensitive to falling interest rates. With the December cut in effect, the market is bullish for tech, thereby further solidifying the investment case for megacaps.
Despite his generally positive outlook, Lee acknowledges several risks that could impact market performance. For instance, he thinks the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) could potentially lead to reduced government spending and slower economic growth if it is too effective in cutting costs. Moreover, the implementation of tariffs could adversely affect economic conditions and corporate profits. Lee pointed out that historical patterns suggest that after two years of substantial gains, markets often experience declines in the latter half of the third year.
With that let’s take a look at the 10 best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years.
Our Methodology
To compile the list of 10 best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years, we applied a consensus approach. We sifted through recent articles to get an aggregated list of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. Next, we ranked these stocks based on the number of hedge fund holders as of Q3 2024, sourced from Insider Monkey’s database.
Why do we care about what hedge funds do? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
10 Best Stocks to Buy and Hold For 3 Years
10. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)
Number of Hedge Funds: 57
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) is a major telecommunication company in the United States. It is one of the largest wireless carriers in the country and holds over 37% market share. The company operates through Verizon Consumer Group and Verizon Business Group segments providing wireless and wired communication and data services.
Several points make Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. Firstly the company has been successful in growing its customer base in a highly competitive market. According to its third-quarter results of fiscal 2024, it achieved 239,000 retail postpaid phone net additions, more than doubling the figure from the previous year. As a result total wireless service revenue reached $19.8 billion, indicating a 2.7% increase year-over-year.
The growth has not been limited to merely the Wireless segment, its Broadband Segment also witnessed an addition of 389,000 broadband connections. This marked the ninth consecutive quarter with over 375,000 net additions. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) has been actively working to expand its fiber network to accelerate its offering of premium broadband and mobility services. To achieve this, management on September 5 announced a strategic acquisition of Frontier Communications, the largest pure-play fiber provider in the United States, for $20 billion. The acquisition will increase its fiber customer base to approximately 25 million subscribers. Management has set an ambitious goal to reach 30 million fiber customers by 2028, with a long-term target of between 35 million and 40 million.
Third Point Management stated the following regarding Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“While some economic activity has been showing signs of slowing, the defensive composition of the current high yield market with a high mix of higher quality credit and short duration has let the rates tailwind overwhelm such concerns. The lowest quality sectors of the market have performed best, fueled by both soft/no landing expectations, as well as two positive events in the beleaguered telecom space. Telecom/cable have been poor performers year to date due to overhang from the growth of FWA (aka “wireless cable”) and increased fiber building, however the sector re-rated materially on two deals. Second, Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) announced a deal to acquire Frontier Communications (FYBR), a transaction which the fund benefited from by virtue of its investment in FYBR debt. This transaction, aimed at increasing’s VZ fiber footprint, has led to broad revaluation of fiber retail networks that we think is appropriate. While we continue to expect to see FWA rapidly erode non-upgraded cable and especially copper’s share of the low-end broadband market, the VZ deal underscores the value of the higher end footprint.”
9. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)
Number of Hedge Funds: 68
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) is a global biopharmaceutical company that focuses on creating and selling medicines and therapies to treat various health conditions. It is heavily focused on discovering new drugs and therapies that address complex diseases. The company exercises its competitive edge through a diverse portfolio of drugs and treatments. Its portfolio spans key areas including Immunology, Oncology, Neuroscience, Eye Care, and more.
Humira, which is a leading treatment for autoimmune diseases, was a top-selling drug for the company and peaked its sales in 2022 by reaching $21 billion. However, during the third quarter of fiscal 2024, Humira revenues fell significantly to $2.23 billion, down 37.2% year-over-year. The decline was due to the drug losing patent protection last year and also because of increased competition from biosimilars. However, AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) was able to successfully navigate this challenge on the back of its extensive portfolio. The company generated $14.46 billion in total worldwide revenue, representing a 3.8% year-over-year increase. Revenue growth was driven by its immunology segment which brought in $7.05 billion in revenue, up around 4% during the same time.
Management also completed the acquisition of Cerevel to enhance its neuroscience pipeline, which grew 15.6% year-over-year to deliver $2.36 billion during the quarter. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) remains one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years due to its robust financial performance and encouraging returns to its shareholders. It announced a dividend increase of 5.8%, effective February 2025, continuing its trend of increasing dividends for 12 consecutive years.
PGIM Jennison Health Sciences Fund stated the following regarding AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) is a global pharmaceutical company with a commercial presence in four key therapeutic verticals: immunology, hematology/oncology, neuroscience, and aesthetics. AbbVie’s flagship product Humira is widely used across multiple immunology indications (totaling $21b in worldwide FY22 sales, or 37% of overall sales in the last year before biosimilar entry) but is declining steeply due to U.S. biosimilar entry in 2023. However, AbbVie’s successful development and launch of next-gen immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq should enable revenues and earnings to grow strongly from its trough earnings-per-share (EPS) in 2023, with Skyrizi and Rinvoq now expected to generate >$27B in sales by 2027, driving an HSD revenue compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2024 to 2029. Importantly, AbbVie faces limited patent cliffs through the end of the decade post-Humira. We turned more constructive on AbbVie stock in late 2023 due to these dynamics but decided to reduce exposure following the stock’s rapid run-up to start the year. This was driven by our expectation that faster-than-expected Humira erosion and one-off headwinds in 2025 will reduce growth to below consensus 2025 expectations. As a result, we were underweight AbbVie again by the time the market started reacting to the 2025 concerns, which were crystallized by management commentary on the 1Q earnings call. We have since exited our position.”
8. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)
Number of Hedge Funds: 80
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) is a global biopharmaceutical company that heavily focuses on research, development, and sale of drugs and specialty treatments. The company has made significant progress in oncology and primary care and has a portfolio that spans over 100 drugs sold internationally.
The company experienced record sales and came under the spotlight due to its COVID-19 vaccine, generating $100 billion in revenue during 2022. Although the COVID-19 threat has been averted, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) still has growth potential as management has shifted focus to its Oncology segment. The company demonstrated its interest by acquiring Seagen for $43 billion in 2023 and plans to expand its oncology portfolio by adding 8 potential cancer treatments by 2030.
The segment is already contributing significant growth. During the fiscal third quarter of 2024, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) generated $17.7 billion in revenue driven by a robust 31% year-over-year growth coming from its Oncology segment. In addition, management has also been focused on improving its cost savings. On December 17, the company announced that it had successfully achieved its goal of $4.0 billion in net cost savings through 2024 and now anticipates an additional $500 million in savings in 2025 as part of its ongoing cost realignment program. It is one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years.
Parnassus Value Equity Fund stated the following regarding Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) in its first quarter 2024 investor letter:
“During the quarter, we added new positions in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE), NICE and Charter Communications. We purchased Pfizer to capture the potential upside from any turnaround following the COVID-induced boom-bust cycle of the last few years. Pfizer’s stock price sank by more than 40% in 2023 as COVID-19 vaccine revenues rolled off, providing an attractive entry point for us. The company completed its acquisition of Seagen, which should strengthen Pfizer’s pipeline in antibody-drug conjugates (ADC). Pfizer also offers an attractive dividend yield.”
7. Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT)
Number of Hedge Funds: 91
Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) specializes in providing essential technologies and services for digital infrastructure. Its products are critical for the high-growth AI and data center industry as they power, cool, and secure data centers. The company also provides integrated rack systems and management systems that allow businesses to monitor and control their digital infrastructure.
As data centers evolve, liquid cooling systems are becoming increasingly important. Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) is gaining market share in this area by focusing on high intellectual property components like cooling distribution units (CDUs) and complete systems. On November 19, the company announced a significant expansion of its liquid cooling product portfolio with the introduction of two new high-capacity (CDUs). The new CDUs are designed to accommodate the high-density computing demands associated with AI applications, allowing data centers to efficiently manage both traditional air-cooled racks and advanced liquid-cooled systems.
As a result of its robust portfolio, the company is experiencing a significant increase in its order backlog. Its backlog at the end of the second quarter of 2024 stood at $7.0 billion, indicating a 47% increase in comparison to the previous year. The backlog only continued to increase during the third quarter to reach $7.4 billion, indicating a 5% increase from the previous quarter. In addition, Vertiv Holdings Co’s (NYSE:VRT) organic sales were also up 19.2% year-over-year driven by double-digit growth in all three regions. Management has taken confidence from its growing order backlog to raise its full-year guidance for all metrics. It now expects organic sales of $7.8 billion up $140 million from the previous expectation. It is one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years.
Baron Small Cap Fund stated the following regarding Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) is a leader in data center equipment, with significant share in both power and cooling applications. The stock rebounded off recent weakness, as investors gained confidence that a massive build out of AI data centers globally was on the horizon. Vertiv’s strong relationship with chip manufacturers and involvement in the necessary technology roadmap for solutions as the energy density of server racks increases were catalysts. Vertiv’s orders were up 57% year-over-year in the second quarter, backlog was $7 billion, a record, and 2024 operating profit margin and EPS guidance was raised.”
6. Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)
Number of Hedge Funds: 99
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. It is one of the pioneers in the electric vehicle industry. It creates various fully electric cars, including popular models like the Model 3, Model Y, Model S, Model X, and the Cyber Truck. It also designs products related to solar energy including energy storage systems like the Powerwall (for homes) and Megapack (for larger applications), which store energy for later use.
The company delivered approximately 462,890 vehicles in Q3 2024, marking a significant increase from the previous year and setting a record for third-quarter volumes. It also benefited from other automakers’ struggle to meet emissions standards and marked the second-highest revenue from regulatory credits. More importantly, the cost of goods sold (COGS) per vehicle dropped to around $35,100, the lowest level ever for the company.
The company is making significant advancements in its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, claiming a 1,000-fold improvement in critical interventions within the software this year. It plans to launch an unsupervised version of its FSD software and introduce a ride-hailing service in California and Texas by 2025. This will be a significant development for the company because as per Grand View Research, FSD vehicle sales are expected to reach $214 billion by 2030, and the management believes the technology can take the company’s gross margins to 70%.
Polen Focus Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“The largest relative detractors during the quarter were Apple, Airbnb, and Tesla (not owned). We’ve spoken at length about our rationale for not owning Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA). In short, the market seems to be pricing in a lot of positive optionality for this company in the near-to-intermediate term (and particularly a fully autonomous fleet of electric vehicles in the medium term). What exists today is an automobile manufacturer limited to the higher-income segment that is increasingly challenged to sell vehicles when interest rates are not zero. We continue to question the company’s long-term growth profile and governance.”
5. Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Number of Hedge Funds: 116
Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) is one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. It is a leading provider of customer relationship management (CRM) technology, which helps businesses manage their interactions with customers. Artificial intelligence is a major cornerstone of its cloud technology. In October, the company introduced Agentforce, a groundbreaking platform designed to create and manage autonomous AI agents. The new feature seamlessly integrated with the company’s existing tools and data systems, including the Customer 360 platform.
During the fiscal third quarter of 2025, Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) benefited greatly from this new AI feature. The company delivered $9.44 Billion in revenue up 8% year-over-year. Recently, on December 17, the company launched an upgraded version of Agentforce to its cloud technology. Agentforce 2.0 uses a new library of pre-built skills that span various applications, including CRM, Slack, and Tableau. This feature enables businesses to quickly customize AI agents for specific tasks without extensive development time, making it easier to implement tailored solutions across different teams.
Major companies including Accenture, The Adecco Group, Finnair, Heathrow Airport, IBM, Indeed, Saks Global, and SharkNinja have already embraced the new feature, indicating strong demand for its technology. Management has raised its fiscal fourth quarter 2025 revenue guidance to between $9.9 billion and $10.10 billion, representing around 8% growth year-over-year.
Polen Focus Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“In the third quarter, we purchased new positions in Apple and Oracle and eliminated our small positions in Nike and Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM). We exited our position in Salesforce to fund better opportunities in Shopify and MSCI. Salesforce is seeing slower revenue growth than we would have expected, given the weakening macroeconomic environment. Furthermore, since its core end markets in customer relationship management (“CRM”) and Service are fairly mature, a lower growth level versus our expectations could persist for some time.”
4. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Funds: 193
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is one of the leading GPU makers internationally, which is driving the AI revolution. It had previously revolutionized the gaming industry through its technology, now its GPUs are the powerhouse for data centers, robotics, autonomous vehicles, and more.
The company has been generating substantial income through its revolutionary technology. Over the past 5 years, NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) has grown its top line by 62% and bottom line by 92%. During its third quarter of fiscal 2024, it generated $35.1 billion in revenue, indicating 94% year-over-year. While the gaming segment contributed $3.8 billion to the total, data center revenue stood out after growing 112% to contribute $30.8 billion.
NVIDIA Corporation’s (NASDAQ:NVDA) Blackwell architecture has been a significant advancement in GPU technology, particularly with its flagship GB200 GPU. The demand for the Blackwell and Hopper platforms has driven substantial revenue growth in the company’s Data Center segment. Sales of the H200 GPU have surged into double-digit billions, marking it as one of the fastest product ramp-ups in NVIDIA’s history. It is one of the best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years.
Ithaka Group’s Ithaka US Growth Strategy stated the following regarding NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is the market leader in visual computing through the production of high-performance graphics processing units (GPUs). The company targets four large and growing markets: Gaming, Professional Visualization, Data Center, and Automotive. NVIDIA’s products have the potential to lead and disrupt some of the most exciting areas of computing, including: data center acceleration, artifi cial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and autonomous driving. The reason for the stock’s appreciation in the quarter was twofold: First, the stock benefi ted from tremendous excitement surrounding the further development of generative AI and the likelihood this would necessitate the purchase of a large number of Nvidia’s products far into the future; Second, Nvidia posted another strong beat[1]and-raise quarter, where the company upped its F2Q25 revenue guidance above Street estimates, showcasing its dominant position in the buildout of today’s accelerated computing infrastructure.”
3. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)
Number of Hedge Funds: 202
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) ranks 3rd on our list of best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. It is a multinational technology conglomerate and the parent company of Google, YouTube, and several other subsidiaries, including Waymo, which focuses on self-driving technology. The company has also developed a family of large language models (LLMs) known as Gemini. These models are integral to the Gemini chatbot and enhance various AI features within Google Search.
While Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) already holds a 90% market share globally with regards to the search engine market, to further enhance the internet search experience management has launched AI Overviews. This feature provides AI-generated responses at the top of search results, integrating text, images, and links to streamline user access to information. It is currently rolling out in 100 countries and aims to serve over 1 billion users monthly.
During the fiscal third quarter of 2024, the company generated $88.3 billion in revenue up 15% year-over-year. Google Advertisement accounted for more than 74% of this revenue standing at $65.9 billion. With the introduction of AI Overviews and other features, management is looking to enhance monetization strategies in response to investor expectations for returns on substantial AI investments. CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted they have reduced the cost per query for its AI Overviews by over 90% within 18 months while doubling the size of its custom Gemini model.
Qualivian Investment Partners stated the following regarding Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL): Q2 2024 revenues and EPS beat expectations, with total revenues growing 14%, Search ad revenues growing 14%, YouTube ads growing 13%, and Google Cloud revenues growing 29%. Revenue growth in the quarter constituted a continued sequential improvement from earlier quarters in the year, suggesting a continued rebound in Alphabet’s core business except for YouTube ad revenues, which missed expectations and showed deceleration in the growth rate as compared to Q1 when it grew 21%. Operating margins improved by 310 bps vs. the same quarter last year.
Management continued to highlight developments with their generative AI program, which is seen as a foundational platform with opportunities across their businesses but particularly in search and cloud. However, this comes with material capex investment well ahead of the expected economic benefits from Gen AI, and the level of spending is leading investors to worry about the ROI on that spend for Alphabet, as well as the other hyperscalers (Microsoft and Amazon). We continue to have confidence in Alphabet’s ability to generate strong revenue, earnings, and cash flow growth well above the S&P 500’s in the years to come and view it as a core holding for the long term.”
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Number of Hedge Funds: 279
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a leading technology company that ranks 2nd on our list of best stocks to buy and hold for 3 years. It is known for a wide range of devices, software, and services. Some of the core offerings by the company include productivity software including Microsoft Office and Azure, the Windows operating system, and Gaming devices such as Xbox consoles.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is leading the AI transformation through its intelligent cloud, Azure, and its advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tool, Copilot. During the fiscal first quarter results of 2025, the company generated $65.6 billion in revenue, up 16% year-over-year. The growth was on the back of Microsoft Cloud, which surpassed $38.9 billion in revenue, up 22%. The segment was driven by Azure which led the server products and cloud services revenue to increase 23%. Management noted that Azure Arc now has over 39,000 customers across every industry, up more than 80% year-over-year.
In addition to its cloud business, the AI business is taking significant leaps forward. Management during the call highlighted that its AI business is on track to surpass an annual revenue run rate of $10 billion next quarter, making it the fastest business to reach the milestone in Microsoft Corporation’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) history. On November 17, the company announced that it is collaborating with Accenture and Avanade to help businesses transform their operations using advanced technologies like generative AI and Microsoft’s Copilot tools. The partnership is expected to further enhance its product offerings, increasing customer engagement and driving financial growth for the company.
RiverPark Large Growth Fund stated the following regarding Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT): MSFT was a top detractor in the third quarter following a fiscal fourth quarter earnings report that featured inline operating metrics but mixed guidance. Positively, the company reported strong revenue (+15%) and earnings growth (+10%), powered by Azure (+30%), and operating margins of 43%. Guidance however calls for lower than expected fiscal first quarter Azure revenue as infrastructure constraints limit growth, and higher capital expenditures throughout the company’s fiscal 2025 to alleviate these constraints. The company expects growth to reaccelerate in the back half of fiscal 2025 as more AI capacity comes online.
Cloud-based services have become the company’s largest revenue and earnings producer. The company’s Azure platform alone has the potential to grow to more than $200 billion in annual revenue over the next decade. Overall, we believe that the company will continue to deliver double-digit revenue and EPS growth and generate an enormous amount of free cash flow to return to shareholders and use for acquisitions.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Funds: 286
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is the best stock to buy and hold for 3 years. What started as an online book-selling venture in the 1990s is now a major e-commerce, streaming, and cloud technology giant. Over the past 5 years, the company has grown its top and bottom line by 18% and 34%, respectively. During the fiscal third quarter of 2024, it generated $158.9 billion in revenue, up 11% year-over-year. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) generates significant revenue, around 60% from its North American segment, which comprises mainly its e-commerce operations. However, its AWS segment takes the lead in terms of profitability. During the recent quarter, the AWS segment contributed $10.4 billion to the company’s total operating income of $17.4 billion.
Management has been making significant strides in its cloud services through strategic initiatives aimed at improving customer experience. It recently launched the Oracle Database@AWS service, which allows customers to migrate their Oracle workloads to AWS infrastructure with minimal changes to their databases or applications. In addition, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) also entered into a collaboration with Databricks, a leader in data analytics and AI. This partnership focuses on accelerating the development of custom AI models using Databricks Mosaic AI on AWS. Lastly, management signed agreements with several large enterprises, including Booking.com, Capital One, and Sony, signifying AWS’s growing influence and trust among major corporations.
Qualivian Investment Partners stated the following regarding Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN): Amazon’s Q2 2024 results missed consensus revenue expectations slightly while beating EPS expectations nicely. Revenue grew 10.0%, including continued reacceleration in AWS (Amazon Web Services) which grew 19%; however, North American and International ecommerce revenue growth both showed slight deceleration in their growth rates from prior quarters. Advertising revenues grew 20%, which decelerated a bit from prior quarters as well.
Encouragingly, the company continued its streak of delivering impressive cost efficiencies in Q2 with operating margins jumping 420 bps vs. Q2 2023. Q3 2024 guidance was also a bit lower than consensus expectations sparking some short-term concerns about the strength of the consumer. We remain comfortable with our long-term outlook for Amazon’s ecommerce and AWS businesses, and expect they have new avenues of growth to exploit in scaling their advertising and generative AI business in the years ahead. However, we recognize that there is trepidation about the level of capex spending required to scale their generative AI business.”
While we acknowledge the potential of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than AMZN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 8 Best Wide Moat Stocks to Buy Now and 30 Most Important AI Stocks According to BlackRock.
Disclosure. None. Insider Monkey focuses on uncovering the best investment ideas of hedge funds and investors. Please subscribe to our daily free newsletter to get the latest investment ideas from hedge funds’ investor letters by entering your email address below.