12 Best Long-Term Growth Stocks to Buy Now

2. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

5-Year Revenue Growth: 18.40%

Number of Hedge Funds: 235

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) develops social media applications and operates through the Family of Apps (FoA) and Reality Labs (RL) segments. The Family of Apps segment covers Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Messenger, and other services, while the Reality Labs segment encompasses mixed, augmented, and virtual reality-related software, hardware, and content.

The company reported a 22% revenue growth to $164.5 billion in fiscal 2024, while earnings grew by 60% year-over-year to $23.86 per share. Its operating income grew by 48% to $69.4 million, giving the company an operating margin of 42%. Meta Platforms, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:META) operating margin for fiscal Q4 2024 reached 48%, reflecting the company’s significant market power.

More than 98% of the company’s revenue comes from selling advertising slots on its social networks to businesses. It is employing AI to further expand its market share growth in the digital advertising space. This strategy is expected to prove profitable for the company, as the adoption of AI in marketing is anticipated to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 25% through 2030, according to Grand View Research. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) also announced that its capital expenditures for 2025 may reach up to $65 billion, reflecting a 60% growth over last year. Most of this capital is expected to go to the company’s AI infrastructure investments.

Rowan Street Capital stated the following regarding Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:

“Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META): Investment Initiated: April 2018: Internal Rate of Return (IRR*): 22% *IRR represents the annualized rate of return on investment, accounting for the timing and magnitude of cash flows over the holding period.

For META, our 22% IRR aligns closely with the company’s compounded growth in earnings per share (EPS) and free cash flow per share during the 6-year holding period.

Looking ahead, Meta is expected to grow its revenues, earnings, and free cash flow per share at mid-teens rates over the next two years. There’s a good possibility that it could exceed these estimates, considering the breadth of growth initiatives currently in place, such as advancements in Al, monetization of Reels, expansion into business messaging, and the ongoing development of the metaverse…” (Click here to read the full text)