Few stocks have sizzled as much as Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR) over the last 12 months. Shares of the data analytics software provider more than quadrupled during the period. Palantir stock is up more than 40% year to date.

However, Palantir isn't anywhere near the top of the list of stocks I think will be the biggest winners for investors over the long run. And some of those stocks could outperform through the rest of this decade, too. I predict three stocks will be worth more than Palantir five years from now.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »

1. Intuitive Surgical

Intuitive Surgical's (NASDAQ: ISRG) market cap is roughly $70 billion smaller than Palantir's right now. But I suspect the tables could be turned in the not-too-distant future.

Granted, Palantir is growing more rapidly. However, Intuitive Surgical continues to deliver impressive growth, too. The robotic systems pioneer's revenue jumped 19% year over year in the first quarter of 2025. Procedure volume for Intuitive's da Vinci robotic systems should increase by 15% to 17% this year.

Importantly, Intuitive Surgical looks like a bargain compared to Palantir. Sure, Intuitive's shares trade at a sky-high forward price-to-earnings ratio of 68. That seems almost cheap, though, when stacked up against Palantir's nosebleed forward earnings multiple of 196.

What I like most about Intuitive Surgical is the high probability of strong future growth. Around 2.7 million procedures were performed using da Vinci last year. Intuitive estimates roughly 8 million procedures are done annually for which it already has products and clearances. The company is targeting approximately 22 million soft-tissue procedures with products and clearances under development.

2. Alibaba Group

Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA) is already somewhat larger than Palantir. Based on the two companies' recent revenue growth, though, some might think this dynamic could change relatively soon. I predict, though, that Alibaba will widen its market cap gap over Palantir over the next five years.

Valuation plays a big factor in my projection. We've already seen how mind-blowingly high Palantir's forward earnings multiple is. Meanwhile, Alibaba's shares trade at only 12.5 times forward earnings. The company's growth prospects make its valuation look even more attractive: Alibaba's price-to-earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio based on analysts' five-year earnings projections is a low 0.71.

Artificial intelligence (AI) demand could serve as a bigger tailwind for Alibaba than it will for Palantir. Alibaba's AI-related product revenue has grown by triple-digit percentages for six consecutive quarters. Its cloud business is also directly benefiting from AI.

Could my prediction about Alibaba be wrong? Maybe. If it is, the most likely culprit that limits the company's growth could be the Chinese government. However, assuming Alibaba is allowed to meet customers' needs relatively unfettered, it should remain bigger than Palantir by the end of the decade.

3. Alphabet

You might wonder why Google parent Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) is on the list. After all, the tech giant is over 7x bigger than Palantir right now. It seems to be a no-brainer that Alphabet will still be larger in five years.

However, I included Alphabet because there's rampant pessimism about the company. Some have proclaimed that generative AI presents an "existential threat" to Google Search. Google has lost two major antitrust lawsuits. One potential outcome is that the business could be broken up.

I don't buy into the gloom and doom surrounding Alphabet, though. I'm confident that it will continue to thrive despite these challenges.

AI, including generative AI, is helping Google a lot more than it's hurting. Google Cloud's business is booming as customers develop generative AI apps in the cloud. AI Overviews in Google Search have increased search usage and customer satisfaction. I expect Alphabet's revenue will grow as it rolls out more agentic AI capabilities.

What about the antitrust rulings? Admittedly, they could present problems for Alphabet. However, it will almost certainly take years for a final resolution. Alphabet could ultimately prevail. Even if not, the remedies the company is forced to make might not be too terribly bad.

Regardless, I'd rather own shares of Alphabet over the next five years than I would Palantir.

Should you invest $1,000 in Alibaba Group right now?

Before you buy stock in Alibaba Group, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Alibaba Group wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $617,181!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $719,371!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 909% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 163% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of May 5, 2025

Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Keith Speights has positions in Alphabet and Intuitive Surgical. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Intuitive Surgical, and Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends Alibaba Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

In 2025, Wall Street has been rattled with increasing concerns about U.S.-China trade wars, escalating geopolitical pressures, rising economic uncertainties, and growing recession fears. The benchmark S&P 500 index is down nearly 4.7% in 2025.

However, this market volatility and sell-off have opened up attractive entry opportunities for retail investors. Companies such as Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO), Shopify (NASDAQ: SHOP), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX), and Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) can be smart bets now. Here's why.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »

Broadcom

Broadcom's stock has seen a dramatic decline of almost 22% from its recent high in December 2024, driven by escalating market fears due to trade wars between the U.S. and China. Yet, the stock remains an alluring buy due to its robust artificial intelligence (AI) strategy and strong financial position.

Unlike many other chip players, which focus on developing general-purpose accelerators that can cater to multiple applications, Broadcom focuses on custom XPUs tailored to the specific needs of its hyperscaler clients. This customization makes the chips optimal for particular workloads, delivering higher performance and energy efficiency for hyperscaler clients.

This strategy seems to be paying off, since management estimates an addressable market of $60 billion to $90 billion from its existing three hyperscaler clients by 2027. This projection does not include the four additional hyperscaler clients already designing custom XPUs. Furthermore, Broadcom's networking solutions are also in high demand, as they are a critical component of large AI clusters.

Broadcom also boasts robust financials, as evidenced by the 25% year-over-year revenue jump and 44% year-over-year operating income surge in the recent quarter (first-quarter fiscal 2025 ended Feb. 2).

Broadcom is trading at 29.4 times forward earnings, far lower than its five-year average of 70.5. Hence, considering its upside potential and reasonable valuation, this may be an opportune time to pick a small stake in this stock.

Shopify

E-commerce giant Shopify is currently down nearly 25% from its recent high in February 2025. Despite this, with the company posting solid 31% year-over-year top-line growth and operating margin of 17% in the recent quarter and reaching an annual gross merchandise value (GMV) of $300 billion, this share price pullback seems like an excellent entry opportunity for retail investors who are ready to ignore short-term share price volatility.

While Shopify does not sell anything online, it provides a complete tech-powered omnichannel setup for merchants to reach out digitally to customers. Once known mainly for focusing on small and medium enterprises, the company now caters to several larger global brands.

Shopify also sees significant growth potential in international markets and has invested strategically in localization, compliance improvements, and local payment methods. Offline commerce and B2B commerce have also emerged as potent growth opportunities. Shopify is also committed to using advanced AI technologies to help new merchants launch and larger merchants scale with greater productivity on its platform.

The stock is trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 66.2, greater than its five-year average of 39. However, the rich valuation seems justified considering its diversified business model, multiple growth drivers, and resilience. Analysts also expect revenue to grow 25.3% year over year to $2.33 billion. That's a healthy growth projection, even though elevated tariff wars may affect it indirectly through its merchant clients. Therefore, the stock seems like an attractive choice now.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals have risen by nearly 23.9% in 2025. However, this healthcare giant still has significant potential for growth.

Vertex continues to dominate the cystic fibrosis (CF) market with drugs such as Trikafta/Kaftrio and the more effective and conveniently dosed next-generation Alyftrek. In 2024, Trikafta/Kaftrio accounted for nearly $10.2 billion of the company's $11 billion net product revenue. With Trikafta's patent protection extending till 2037, the company has robust revenue visibility.

Vertex has also made its presence felt in blood disorders, pain management, diabetes, and renal diseases. Journavx, the first new non-opioid pain medicine to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in over 20 years, has a potential market of 80 million patients with all types of moderate to severe acute pain. The recently launched Casgevy is also proving to be a transformative one-time treatment for patients with certain blood disorders.

The company has demonstrated robust financial strength, with $11.2 billion in cash and hardly any debt. Considering the company's many strong tailwinds and solid financials, a forward price-to-earnings multiple of 24.2 does not seem expensive, making the stock a worthwhile buy now.

Intuitive Surgical

Leading surgical robotics player Intuitive Surgical's shares have been mostly flat in 2025. However, with its global da Vinci installed base exceeding 10,000 systems across 70 countries, the company's stock seems well-positioned for rapid growth in the coming years, despite facing challenges in importing and exporting medical device components due to the ongoing trade wars.

Intuitive Surgical has demonstrated robust operational and financial performance, with 18.5% year-over-year procedure growth on a day-adjusted basis and a 19% revenue jump in the first quarter of 2025. The company's latest da Vinci 5 system is gaining strong momentum, with nearly 147 systems placed and more than 32,000 procedures performed in the first quarter.

Intuitive Surgical also expects to enable additional features for its da Vinci system, such as real-time surgical video review, force feedback technology, and real-time 3D model review.

The company is also continues to develop its Case Insight computational technology, which has delivered data sets such as video, kinematic energy, and force data for over 22,000 procedures performed with the da Vinci system. This helps surgeons effectively review procedure videos to identify operational and clinical insights. Intuitive expects these computational tools to be a major differentiator in the long run.

Against this backdrop, although a forward price-to-earnings multiple of 56.6x appears expensive, the rich valuation reflects the company's market-dominance and significant growth prospects -- making it a smart buy even at elevated levels.

Should you invest $1,000 in Broadcom right now?

Before you buy stock in Broadcom, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Broadcom wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $623,685!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $701,781!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 906% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 164% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 28, 2025

Manali Pradhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Intuitive Surgical, Shopify, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Equity markets may be struggling because of President Donald Trump's current economic policies, but that doesn't mean investors should avoid buying stocks right now -- quite the contrary. History tells us that equities tend to experience strong runs following downturns, so it's worth putting money into excellent companies that are being dragged down with along with the broader market.

To that end, let's consider five excellent growth-oriented companies to invest in on the dip: Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO), Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX), Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG), and Shopify (NASDAQ: SHOP).

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly

It might seem odd to group Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, but these drugmakers have much in common. They've been the leaders in the diabetes drug market for decades, and both are now pioneering the obesity management space. Novo Nordisk was first to market with Wegovy, an anti-obesity medicine that has become a household name. Eli Lilly then made its move with Zepbound, whose sales are growing incredibly rapidly.

Both companies also have exciting candidates in the pipeline in diabetes and obesity care. Eli Lilly should release data from phase 3 clinical trials for orforglipron, a once-daily oral pill for weight management, sometime this year. Novo Nordisk failed to impress the market with late-stage clinical trial data for CagriSema, an anti-obesity candidate, but it has more potential gems in its pipeline.

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have both seen sales grow rapidly in recent years thanks to their dominance in weight management. And although some observers were worried about their valuations, the current sell-off should take care of that problem.

There are some key differences between these two leading drugmakers. Novo Nordisk is more focused on diabetes than its counterpart; as of November, it held a 33.7% share of the diabetes care market -- remaining flat year over year. Eli Lilly has blockbusters in other areas, such as immunology and oncology.

In the long run, expect somewhat more of the same, though Novo Nordisk should succeed in diversifying its operations. The crucial point is that both companies are innovative drugmakers with deep lineups, pipelines, and significant growth prospects. Now that they've become cheaper in the sell-off, it's a great time to buy.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals is another leading drugmaker that famously dominates its market: medicines for cystic fibrosis (CF), a disease that affects internal organs. Vertex develops the only therapies in the world that target the underlying causes of this condition.

The company generates steady revenue and profits. Though it's made tremendous headway in treating CF patients since the early 2010s, there remain many who have yet to start treatment, even among those who are eligible for its current drugs.

Elsewhere, the biotech has expanded its lineup thanks to therapies like Casgevy, which treats a pair of blood-related disorders, and Journavx, a non-opioid pain medication; both should be significant growth drivers. And that's before we look into the pipeline, which boasts several promising candidates.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals' prospects remain attractive, making it a top stock to buy in this downturn.

Intuitive Surgical

Intuitive Surgical is a medical device specialist that dominates the robotic-assisted surgery (RAS) market. The company's crown jewel is the da Vinci system, which is approved for many procedures across multiple areas. The most recent iteration of this device -- the fifth -- is an improvement over previous versions. Though it only received clearance last year, it has already attracted quite a bit of attention, more than analysts expected.

This shows, once again, Intuitive's commitment to innovation. So, despite the threat of competition from healthcare giants like Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson -- both of which are working on RAS devices -- Intuitive Surgical's long-term prospects look attractive. Besides its innovative abilities, Intuitive benefits from a first-mover advantage: It will take years before newcomers jump through all the clinical and regulatory hoops needed to challenge the company's dominance.

Meanwhile, the RAS market remains underpenetrated, with fewer than 5% of eligible procedures being performed robotically. Expect Intuitive to grow its installed base and procedure volume at a good clip in the long run, along with its revenue and earnings. The stock can still provide outsized returns.

Shopify

E-commerce specialist Shopify started the year on a strong note. Its financial results have been strong lately, particularly on the bottom line, where relatively recent changes (getting rid of its logistics business and increasing its prices) are helping boost profits. However, the company has not escaped the market downturn. Still, considering Shopify's position in the e-commerce field -- and the industry's prospects -- this is an excellent opportunity to pick up some shares.

Shopify gives merchants everything they need to start and run an online storefront, with thousands of apps in its app store that cater to merchants' demands beyond the company's basic offerings. It also holds a 12% market share in the U.S. by gross merchandise volume -- that's up from 10% in 2022. And it benefits from a strong competitive advantage based on switching costs.

Meanwhile, e-commerce still accounts for under 20% of total retail commerce in the U.S., one of the world's leaders in the industry. Shopify could ride the increased growth of this market for years and deliver strong returns to loyal, patient shareholders. That's why the stock is worth buying on the dip.

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:

• Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $249,730!*
• Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $32,689!*
• Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $469,399!*

Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.

Continue »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 5, 2025

Prosper Junior Bakiny has positions in Eli Lilly, Intuitive Surgical, Johnson & Johnson, Novo Nordisk, Shopify, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Intuitive Surgical, Shopify, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool recommends Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, and Novo Nordisk and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $75 calls on Medtronic and short January 2026 $85 calls on Medtronic. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.