The Nasdaq-100 tracks the performance of the 100 largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. Component weighting is adjusted quarterly in March, June, and September, and the entire index is reconstituted annually in December.
The Nasdaq-100 is heavily weighted toward the technology sector, a corner of the market where the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has been particularly impactful. Indeed, Nvidia(NASDAQ: NVDA) and Meta Platforms(NASDAQ: META) have led the index higher since ChatGPT debuted in late 2022, with two-year returns totaling 910% and 510%, respectively, at the time of writing.
Overall, Wall Street remains bullish on both stocks. The figures below come from CNN Business.
- Among the 65 analysts that follow Nvidia, 92% rate the stock a buy. The median price target of $150 per share implies 2% upside from its current share price of $147.
- Among the 70 analysts that follow Meta Platforms, 84% rate the stock a buy. The median price target of $655 per share implies 11% upside from its current share price of $589.
Here's what investors should know about these red-hot Nasdaq stocks.
Nvidia: 2-year return of 910%
Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs) are the industry standard in accelerating data center tasks like training machine learning models and running artificial intelligence (AI) applications. GPUs can perform technical calculations more quickly and efficiently than central processing units (CPUs), and Nvidia systems consistently set performance records at the MLPerfs, unbiased benchmarks that measure AI training and inference capabilities.
"One key aspect of Nvidia's success lies in its vertical integration across hardware and software domains," according David Harold at Jon Peddie Research. To elaborate, Nvidia complements its GPUs with CPUs, networking equipment, and interconnects, all of which run its proprietary CUDA software that streamlines application development across use cases ranging from recommender systems to robots. In other words, the company provides a full-stack solution for AI.
Nvidia reported strong financial results in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 (ended July 2024). Revenue surged 122% to $30 billion on strong demand for AI hardware and software. And non-GAAP earnings climbed 152% to $0.68 per dilute share. The company is well positioned to maintain that momentum in future quarters given that spending on AI accelerators is projected to grow at 29% annually through 2030, according to Grand View Research.
Going forward, Wall Street expects Nvidia's earnings to increase at 35% annually over the next three years. That makes the current valuation of 69 times earnings look tolerable, but not cheap. Importantly, Nvidia shares could be quite volatile in the coming weeks because the company reports third-quarter financial results on Nov. 20. Investors comfortable with volatility should consider buying a few shares today.
Meta Platforms: 2-year return of 510%
Meta Platforms owns four of the seven most popular social media platforms on the planet in Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Each one has over a billion monthly active users, and they collectively draw over 3.2 billion unique visitors each day. The ability to engage users and collect data on that scale has helped Meta become the second-largest ad tech company in the world behind Alphabet's Google.
Meta is leaning on artificial intelligence to deepen engagement and reduce costs for advertisers. Year to date, AI recommendations have increased time spent on Facebook and Instagram by 8% and 6%, respectively, according CEO Mark Zuckerberg. And the new conversational assistant Meta AI has drawn over 500 million monthly users since its beta release a little over a year ago. Zuckerberg says its on pace to be the "most used AI assistant by the end of the year."
Meta Platforms reported solid financial results in the third quarter, beating estimates on the top and bottom lines. Revenue increased 19% to $40.6 billion and GAAP earnings jumped 37% to $6.03 per diluted share. Zuckerberg told analysts, "We're seeing AI have a positive impact on nearly all aspects of our work from our core business and monetization to our long-term road maps for new services and computing platforms."
Since 2020, Meta Platforms has recorded a total operating loss exceeding $58 billion within Reality Labs, the business unit focused on augmented reality (AR). That massive cash burn has led to concern in some corners, but the company may realize greater returns on those investments in the not-to-distant future. Rosenblatt analyst Barton Crockett at says Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses could "be something of a hit this Christmas."
Additionally, Meta Platforms recently showcased Orion, its first pair of fully holographic AR glasses. Mark Zuckerberg mentioned the product on the recent earnings call. "We're not too far off from being able to deliver great-looking glasses the let you seamlessly blend the physical and digital worlds," he told analysts.
Looking ahead, Wall Street expects Meta Platforms' earnings to increase at 21% annually over the next three years. Compared to that consensus estimate, the current valuation of 28 times earnings look very reasonable. Investors should feel comfortable buying a small position in this stock today.
Don’t miss this second chance at a potentially lucrative opportunity
Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this.
On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves:
- Amazon: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2010, you’d have $23,446!*
- Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $42,982!*
- Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $428,758!*
Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.
*Stock Advisor returns as of November 4, 2024
Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Trevor Jennewine has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
