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Seven Strains of the Wilderness continues to generate a significant amount of ink in the media. There's a good reason for that. Seven megacap tech stocks accounted for nearly two-thirds of the benchmark S&P 500 index's 24% rise in 2023. Six of the seven stocks are among the world's 10 largest companies by market capitalization. The dominance and influence of stocks is unquestionable.
That said, there are plenty of small-cap tech stocks that are just as attractive and have the potential to deliver big returns for investors. Although these stocks don't get a lot of attention, they have proven to be consistent outperformers that can boost your portfolio's returns. Here are three tech stocks to buy in addition to megacaps.
Adobe (ADBE)
There is a chance to buy on the spur of the moment adobe (NASDAQ:adobe) after the company's stock price fell following lackluster forward guidance that disappointed Wall Street. ADBE's stock price is down 10% year-on-year. Many analysts are urging investors to view the drop in the stock price as an opportunity to buy the tech stock. Morningstar reiterated its price target of $610 per share, implying an 18% upside from current levels.
The company, which makes popular products such as Photoshop and Illustrator, reported strong financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023. Adobe announced his earnings per share (EPS) was $4.48 compared to $4.38 expected among analysts. Sales came in at $5.18 billion, compared to expectations of $5.14 billion. What really hurts stock prices is OpenAI announced Sora, a competitive AI platform that can generate videos based on written prompts. But analysts say these concerns are overdone.
Crowd Strike (CRWD)
Stocks in cybersecurity companies cloud strike (NASDAQ:CRWD) It's been on fire lately. CRWD stock recently soared 21% in one day after the company announced fourth-quarter 2023 results that beat Wall Street expectations. Over the past 12 months, CrowdStrike stock has risen 141%, making it the top performing tech stock. Additionally, the company sets itself apart from other cybersecurity packs.
Most recently, CrowdStrike reported EPS of 95 cents, compared to Wall Street's expectations of 82 cents. The company's full-year 2023 sales increased 36% from 2022 levels to $3 billion. In terms of guidance, CrowdStrike expects its current first quarter revenue to be $906 million, up from $902 million. Management reiterated its goal of achieving $10 billion in annual recurring revenue by 2030.
Block (SQ)
Digital payments company stocks block (New York Stock Exchange:square) Could be a good way to play this year's rally with cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin (BTC-USD). This is because Block is one of the world's largest corporate owners of BTC. The company currently owns 8,038 Bitcoins worth approximately $520 million. Block reported a surprise profit in the fourth quarter of 2023, driving its stock price up 16%, mainly due to an increase in its Bitcoin holdings.
The company, formerly known as “Square,” reported earnings of 45 cents per share, far exceeding Wall Street's expectations for a loss of 57 cents. The windfall was almost entirely due to a $207 million increase in the company's Bitcoin holdings during the quarter. The company also announced that it earned $66 million in profits from Bitcoin sales through its banking platform Cash App, a 90% increase from the same period last year. SQ stock is up 10% since the beginning of the year.
On the date of publication, Joel Baglor did not have (directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and are subject to InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.