We recently published a list of the 7 Best Revenue Growth Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) stands against the other best revenue growth stocks to buy according to analysts.
The Fed recently cut the funds rate by 50 basis points which has been considered a bold move by some analysts while others and most of the market have welcomed it with open arms. Moreover, over 50% of interest rate traders expect another 50 bps cut in the next meeting as well, according to the CME Fed-watch tool.
While the Fed’s move might seem risky, the broader market is up over 2.5% since the cuts, as of September 27.
Jeremy Siegel on the Fed’s Bold Move
In an interview with CNBC Squawk Box on September 19, Professor Jeremy Siegel of the Wharton School expressed his strong approval of the Fed’s decision to cut interest rates by 50 basis points. He called it the best news from the Fed in years.
Professor Siegel believes that this move will lead to a significant rise in the stock market and pointed out that the Fed is now addressing the gap between current rates and what he considers the “new neutral” Fed funds rate of 2.9%.
He said that the Fed has shifted from expecting only one rate cut by the year’s end to anticipating four cuts in total, with the market reflecting expectations of a gradual approach to future cuts.
When asked about concerns from former Fed Vice Chair Roger Ferguson, who warned that the market might be overreacting to the cuts, Siegel said that smaller, consistent rate decreases would be enough.
He suggested that if inflation remains low, the Fed could implement 25 basis point cuts in the upcoming meetings, ultimately reducing rates to around 3.3% to 3.5%. He said with confidence that inflation would not rise significantly, as he referenced the market indicators suggesting it could fall below 2% next year.
In a discussion about economic policies from the presidential candidates, Professor Siegel critiqued both sides as extreme and said that their policies are unlikely to be implemented. He said that there would be a divided government that would limit any drastic changes. He stressed that while some policies might be proposed, actual governance would lead to compromises rather than sweeping reforms.
Historical Insights on Rate Cuts and Stock Returns
According to data from Ned Davis Research, historical trends indicate that stocks tend to perform favorably in the year following the initial interest rate cut. According to the data, the broader market has recorded an average increase of around 12% in the first six months and 15% in the first twelve.
Despite the generally positive outlook for stocks following interest rate cuts, there were exceptions in 2001 and 2007, when the broader market saw declines of 12.4% and 22.2%, respectively, in the year following the Fed’s actions. This shows that historical average performance does not guarantee that rate cuts will always yield favorable outcomes.
However, looking at the last ten rate cut cycles since 1974, the market has risen in eight of those instances, with four cycles resulting in gains of over 20%. Additionally, after the 1974 cut cycle, the market reached a remarkable 40% increase.
Our Methodology
For this article, we used stock screeners to compile a list of over 30 stocks with 5-year revenue compound annual growth rate of 30% or above. Next, we narrowed our list to 7 stocks most favored by analysts. The 7 best revenue growth stocks are listed in ascending order of their average analyst price target upside as of September 27.
We also mentioned the hedge fund sentiment around each stock.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? 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).
Is Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) One of the Best Revenue Growth Stocks to Buy According to Analysts?
Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)
Average Price Target Upside: 34.39%
5-Year Revenue CAGR: 42.87%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 59
Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ), formerly known as Square, Inc., is a prominent American technology company. The organization operates through two primary segments, Square and Cash App. The Square segment focuses on providing a wide range of commerce products designed for various business needs, including services for restaurants, retail, online sales, and invoicing.
The segment improves business operations with features such as loyalty programs, marketing tools, team management, and payroll services. On the other hand, the Cash App segment empowers individuals with financial tools, that enable peer-to-peer payments, Bitcoin transactions, stock investments, and flexible payment solutions like Pay in 4.
With a consensus Buy rating from 44 analysts, the stock’s average price target of $90.00 represents an upside of 34.39%, as of September 27. It takes its place among our best revenue growth stocks to buy according to analysts.
In the most recent quarter, Block (NYSE:SQ) reported a net income of $195.3 million, translating to earnings of $0.31 per share. This marks an impressive 91% increase compared to the same period last year. The Cash App division emerged as a driver of profitability, generating $1.3 billion in gross profit, which is a 23% increase year-over-year.
The company’s overall financial health is further illustrated by the reported adjusted free cash flow of $1.43 billion for the twelve months ending in June. The figure is double that of the prior period and accounts for 57% of adjusted EBITDA, which shows the company’s ability to generate cash effectively.
Columbia Contrarian Core Fund stated the following regarding Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) – It is hard to pinpoint why the stock moved lower in the last two months of the quarter, but the most likely reason seems to be simply that investor sentiment on the stock remains generally quite negative for the near term. Investors seem to be taking recent comments from Jack Dorsey (CEO of Square, who also heads Square’s parent company, Block) to mean that a lot still needs to be fixed, rather than the perspective that Mr. Dorsey is being honest and straightforward that things weren’t working and that Square now has a clear plan and a lot of urgency behind its initiatives. The reinvigoration of Square appears very real, with a bold vision to become a generational technology company. The organization is aligned on making Square and Cash App a vertically integrated commerce platform for both sellers and consumers. For Square, this means achieving a growth rate similar to its early days with much better technology while, for Cash App, success is defined as becoming the leading primary bank for those making less than $150,000 per year, along with significant success combining the two ecosystems. The experimentation and innovation culture is back with buy-in across the organization, with a key focus on engineering discipline and exceptional products. This discipline had been lost and is now coming back and should create much better product experiences that are customer-problem focused and enable the company to regain its prior pace of market share gains.”
Overall, SQ ranks 3rd on our list of the best revenue growth stocks to buy according to analysts. While we acknowledge the potential of SQ as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than SQ but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.