In this article, we discuss the 5 best stocks to buy right now. If you want to read our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to What are the Best Stocks to Buy Right Now?
5. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 159
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) is a California-based firm that operates the internet search engine Google. It is ranked fifth on our list of 10 best stocks to buy right now. The company’s shares have returned 82% to investors over the past year. Over the past year, the sales of the Google Cloud platform marketed by the firm have increased as remote work becomes the norm in many parts of the world, driving revenue growth for the internet giant. The firm recently beat market estimates on revenue and earnings per share for the second quarter.
On July 28, investment advisory JPMorgan reiterated an Overweight rating on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) stock and raised the price target to $3,250 from $2,875, noting that key components of a bull thesis on the firm were continuing to play out.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, London-based investment firm TCI Fund Management is a leading shareholder in the firm with 2.9 million shares worth more than $6.1 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Artisan Partners, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Large-cap tech companies have been resilient through the pandemic—Alphabet among them. A top contributor, Alphabet’s Play Store and Google Cloud are in demand as businesses accelerate online activity which, along with strong YouTube user growth, is helping stabilize temporarily weaker search ad revenue trends. Through the lens of our disciplined bottom-up research process, we view Alphabet as one of the best businesses in the world, capable of expanding revenues at a rapid rate for years to come, with a bullet proof balance sheet and an average asking price. It’s a name we’ve owned since 2012 and for which we continue to have high hopes regarding future prospects.”
4. Visa Inc. (NYSE: V)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 164
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is placed fourth on our list of 10 best stocks to buy right now. The stock has returned 29% to investors over the past twelve months. The company markets payment solutions. It is based in California. In earnings results for the second quarter, posted on July 27, the firm reported earnings per share of $1.49, beating market estimates by $0.14. The revenue over the period was more than $6 billion, up 26% compared to the revenue over the same period last year and beating estimates by $270 million.
On July 28, investment advisory Wedbush maintained an Outperform rating on Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) stock and raised the price target to $270 from $250, backing the firm to deliver another strong quarter of growth in the coming months.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 164 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $26.5 billion in Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), down from 166 in the preceding quarter worth $23.5 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“To make room for these new names with more attractive outlooks related to the reopening, we sold out of companies where the thesis is not playing out at the pace we expected including Visa.”
3. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 243
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) is a Washington-based technology company that primarily runs an ecommerce business. It is ranked third on our list of 10 best stocks to buy right now. The company’s shares have returned 5% to investors over the past year. In earnings results for the second quarter, posted on July 29, the firm reported earnings per share of $15.12, beating market predictions by $2.80. The revenue over the period was more than $113 billion, up 27% year-on-year but missing estimates by close to $2 billion.
On July 30, investment advisory Stifel maintained a Buy rating on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) stock with a price target of $4400, underlining that the firm was undergoing a transition phase and would emerge stronger out of it.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, London-based investment firm Citadel Investment Group is a leading shareholder in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) with 3.3 million shares worth more than $10.5 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Hayden Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Amazon (AMZN): We sold our last remaining stake in Amazon this quarter. Amazon was our longest-running investment holding, after having originally purchasing it at the inception of Hayden in 2014, at a price of ~$317.
I gave some details of how Amazon has progressed over these past 6.5 years in last year’s Q2 2020 letter, which partners can find here (LINK). The company has executed amazingly well over this tenure, with revenues up ~3.3x and since our initial purchase, and reported operating income up ~30x over that period.
Generally, I believe there are three reasons to sell an investment: 1) we recognize our initial thesis is wrong (sell out as quick as possible), 2) we have a significantly higher returning opportunity to redeploy the capital into (sell-down to fund the new investment), or 3) the company is maturing and hitting the top part of it’s S-curve / business lifecycle, so the business has fewer places to reinvest its capital internally. As such, the future returns will likely be lower than the past. This investment thus becomes a “source of capital” in the future, as we fund earlier-stage investment opportunities… (Click here to see the full text)
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 251
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) stock has offered investors returns exceeding 38% over the course of the past year. It is placed second on our list of 10 best stocks to buy right now. The company is based in Washington and has a market cap of over $2 trillion. It markets several software-related services but has large stakes in other businesses as well. Last week, media reports indicated that the company was considering investment in Oyo, an Indian startup valued at close to $9 billion that is working in the travel industry.
On July 28, investment advisory JPMorgan reiterated an Overweight rating on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) stock and raised the price target to $310 from $300, noting that the firm recently beat market expectations on earnings.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) with 23.9 million shares worth more than $5.6 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Polen Capital, an investment management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“We have written extensively about Microsoft in recent commentaries. It was our leading contributor last year and one of our largest weightings within the Portfolio. It continues to experience business momentum through several dominant, essential, and competitively advantaged businesses, like Office 365 and Azure. The markets it competes for are enormous, which gives the company the ability to compound at scale. In the past quarter alone, the company generated over $40 billion in revenue, representing a 17% growth rate. The inherent operating leverage in Microsoft’s business model continues and led to 34% earnings growth this past quarter. Despite the broad rotation we saw in the first quarter and Microsoft’s robust performance in 2020, we think its business fundamentals continue to exhibit strength, and the stock continues to reflect the fundamentals.”
1. Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 257
Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) is ranked first on our list of 10 best stocks to buy right now. The company’s shares have offered investors returns exceeding 40% over the course of the past twelve months. The company owns and runs some of the most popular social media platforms like Facebook, with over $2.8 billion monthly active users, and Instagram and WhatsApp, with a combined user base of more than 3 billion. It also has stakes in other technology-related businesses. The company recently posted earnings for the second quarter, reporting a revenue of $29 billion, up 55% year-on-year and beating estimates by over $1 billion.
On July 29, investment advisory Evercore maintained an Outperform rating on Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) stock and raised the price target to $450 from $400, highlighting the second quarter earnings beat of the firm and growth catalysts ahead.
At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 257 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $40 billion in Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB), up from 242 in the preceding quarter worth $38 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“We continued to keep our learnings from 2020 in mind during the quarter as we sought to increase the up capture of the portfolio. We also made adjustments to the portfolio’s top 10 holdings to increase the participation of select stocks, including Facebook, while trimming our weighting to stable names, which now represent 47% of the portfolio. Our repositioning has been encouraging so far with the portfolio performing better on up days in the market while maintaining good down capture during more turbulent sessions.”
You can also take a peek at 10 Best Up and Coming Stocks to Invest In and 15 Stocks that Will Double In 2021.
