Excerpt: A company with a dominant position in an important industry can be a great investment. Stephen Wright looks at two growth stocks that fit the bill.
When it comes to growth stocks, the headlines have been taken by big US tech firms. And rightly so – the likes of Nvidia and Microsoft have achieved spectacular results recently.
It’s not just companies in the artificial intelligence race that have strong growth prospects, though. I think there are some interesting opportunities elsewhere at the moment.
Rightmove
Rising interest rates have been a real dampener for the Rightmove (LSE:RMV) share price. Despite a 25% increase in sales, the stock is still roughly where it was five years ago.
The main reason is that interest rates have gone from below 1% in 2019 to above 5% recently. That’s made borrowing more expensive and caused demand in the property market to slow.
The biggest risk for Rightmove is the possibility of this continuing. Inflation reached the official 2% target last month, but the Bank of England seems reluctant to bring rates down.
There are some positive signs, though. Lenders have been finding ways to offer mortgages with lower deposit requirements, causing house prices to hold up well.
In addition, both the Conservatives and Labour are promising to invest in housing after the election. This should mean strong demand for the UK’s largest online property platform.
Rightmove’s share price has struggled recently in an environment where interest rates have been higher. But now might be the time to consider buying the stock for what comes next.
Broadridge Financial
US-listed Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) probably isn’t on the radar of many UK investors. But I think it’s a really interesting stock that could be a great investment.
The business distributes investor materials to shareholders for other companies. This is something they could do themselves, but it’s time-consuming and expensive.
Broadridge’s scale means it can do this at a fraction of the cost. With the need for investor communications unlikely to go away, it has a dominant position in an important industry.
That’s a powerful combination. However, despite the stock being down since the start of the year, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 33 means there’s a clear risk for investors.
The company’s competitive position gives it good scope for growth, though. The most conservative analyst estimates expect earnings per share to reach $9.20 by 2026.
If that happens, the current share price implies a P/E ratio of around 21. Based on this, I think the stock looks like one to consider for investors looking for long-term returns.
Long-term investing
The best time to buy stocks is often when investors are looking the other way. And I think this is the case with Rightmove and Broadridge at the moment.
With Rightmove, lower interest rates are the key to future growth. This should benefit both the share price and the underlying business.
In the case of Broadridge, the business is less cyclical. Its dominant position should allow it to grow its earnings through gradual price increases, sending the stock higher as a result.
