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3 Best Growth Stocks To Buy In 2026 Forbes

Bonisiwe Shabane
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3 best growth stocks to buy in 2026 forbes

Since I first appeared on CNBC decades ago to discuss technology stocks, I have learned: When a company grows faster than investors expect and raises its growth forecast, its stock price usually goes up. That’s what we’re likely to see in 2026 with the AI chip designer Nvidia; another company called Iren, which is a former bitcoin miner turned AI cloud services provider; and quantum computing service provider... Here’s why buying shares of these growth stocks could help your portfolio — and the associated risks: A growth stock is a share of a company that is expected to grow at a faster rate than the average company in the market. These companies often reinvest their earnings back into the business to fund expansion, so they do not pay dividends. Investors buy growth stocks for their potential for high capital gains, based on the expectation that the company's future earnings will drive a significant increase in share price.

Prospects for growth stocks in 2026 are positive due to strong earnings expectations and continued investment in areas like artificial intelligence. Analysts anticipate growth for the broader market and specific sectors, supported by rising AI-related capital expenditures. However, volatility for companies without strong fundamentals remains a risk. NVIDIA, Iren, and IonQ look very well positioned with powerful exposure to AI, high-performance computing, and emerging technologies likely to accelerate in 2026. Growth stocks provide strong potential return opportunities but are associated with higher volatility, valuation risks, and increased sensitivities to economic conditions. Other high-upside candidates such as Palantir, AMD, Broadcom, and JPMorgan can be good complements to add diversification to such a set of top picks.

Growth stocks pair greater risk with superior long-term returns. Strong earnings forecasts, with increasing investment in areas such as artificial intelligence, data infrastructure, and quantum technology, mean that the outlook for growth stocks in 2026 remains generally favorable. This can be a pretty volatile sector, however, particularly when valuations are stretched or fundamentals are unproven. Among the many emerging opportunities, NVIDIA stands out because of its rapid revenue acceleration and strategic position in high-growth industries. The following are the best growth stocks for 2026 with robust market demand. These three stocks look well-positioned to be winners next year.

With 2025 beginning to wind down, it's time for investors to start looking toward what could be the best stocks to buy for next year. Here are three stocks that have real potential to outperform in 2026 and beyond. Where Nvidia (NVDA +1.42%) goes, the market is likely to follow. The maker of graphics processing units (GPUs) has grown to become the largest company in the world and is the poster child of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. Its chips are the backbone of AI data centers, and right now, there appears to be no let-up in AI infrastructure spending. Large language models (LLMs), such as OpenAI, as well as cloud computing companies and other tech giants have all committed to increasing their AI spending in the coming years, which bodes well for Nvidia.

The company has a tight grip on the GPU market, which involves the chips most commonly used to provide the muscle to train AI models and run inference. Nvidia's edge comes from its CUDA software platform, which is the platform on which most developers learned to program GPUs and on which most foundational AI code is written. With AI set to lead the market higher again in 2026, Nvidia is a stock to own. Nvidia is a semiconductor giant and recently became the first $5 trillion company. Netflix has grown so much that it's splitting 10-for-1. Remember that high-flying growth stocks can pull back more sharply in a market downturn.

Here comes a new year...and with it, perhaps, a few new stocks for our portfolios. Below, I'm offering a few growth-stock ideas for your consideration. Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) is already in my portfolio, and despite the fact that it has averaged annual gains of 145% over the past three years, the semiconductor company doesn't look wildly overvalued. That's because it's growing so briskly. Written by James Brumley for The Motley Fool-> Artificial intelligence is expected to be a major growth driver again.

A handful of companies have news-based catalysts in the works as well. In a couple of cases, shareholders are simply hoping for more of the same. What a year for the stock market! Not a bad one -- as of the latest look, the S&P 500 is actually on track to log a 2025 gain of nearly 20%. The top growth stock picks for 2026 include shares in companies leading the AI boom and benefiting from growth in quantum computing. The top growth stock picks for 2026 include shares in companies leading the AI boom and benefiting from growth in quantum computing.

These three high-growth opportunities also come with identifiable risks, including elevated valuations, market volatility, and the uncertainty inherent in emerging technologies. , I have learned: When a company grows faster than investors expect and raises its growth forecast, its stock price usually goes up. That’s what we’re likely to see in 2026 with the AI chip designer Nvidia; another company called Iren, which is a former bitcoin miner turned AI cloud services provider; and quantum computing service provider... These companies often reinvest their earnings back into the business to fund expansion, so they do not pay dividends. Investors buy growth stocks for their potential for high capital gains, based on the expectation that the company's future earnings will drive a significant increase in share price. Prospects for growth stocks in 2026 are positive due to strong earnings expectations and continued investment in areas like artificial intelligence.

Analysts anticipate growth for the broader market and specific sectors, supported by rising AI-related capital expenditures. However, volatility for companiesI picked these stocks because of their high anticipated growth rates and their stock-price performance in 2025. Two of these companies –and Iren – are also highly profitable. IonQ is growing rapidly and losing money. However, the stock prices of all of these companies have appreciated in 2025.The three best growth stocks to invest in for 2026 may be Nvidia, Iren, and IonQ. Nvidia’s growth is high, but slowing down, and the company is highly profitable.

Iren’s growth has accelerated tremendously after pivoting to provide AI computing services, and IonQ is growing rapidly by making quantum computing a practical alternative for large organizations and government agencies.Nvidia — along with OpenAI... The AI chip designer continues to grow rapidly because of strong demand for its high-performance graphics processing units. The company's products are central to the development and operation of large AI models, and analysts expect its growth to continue at a 56.3% rate through 2026,Reasons to buy NVIDIA stock include its 90%... Since the mid-2000s, Nvidia has been building CUDA, a software platform that “allows customers to fine tune the performance of its processors,”wrote. By encouraging developers to use CUDA to build and test AI applications, the platform has become “the de facto industry standard.” “Nvidia has done just a masterful job of making it easier to run... “CUDA is hands down the jewel in Nvidia’s crown.

It’s the thing that’s gotten them this far. And I think it’s going to carry them for a while longer,” Wilford added. Reasons to maybe avoid Nvidia include its high valuation , the risk of an AI bubble bursting, and the potential for competition or a slowdown in AI spending.Despite a projected $1.5 trillion debt for... In response to high demand, the company is adapting its computing resources to provide data-center capacity for high-performance computing and AI applications. Wall Street analysts expect Iren’s revenue toReasons to buy $IREN include its new focus on AI infrastructure, strong partnerships with Nvidia and Microsoft, and high growth potential due to the currently high demand for... Analysts estimate that IonQ revenue will grow about 87% in 2026 as the company continues to develop and offer quantum computing systems as a service through Microsoft Azure and other cloud platforms,Reasons to buy...

IonQ reported rapid revenue growth in Q3 2025 while adding major customers like AstraZeneca, Airbus and the U.S. Department of Energy, the"This has helped increase IonQ's portion of revenue that is recurring while IonQ noted it can now pursue large contracts, particularly in the federal space, that are potentially nine-figures in size... Davidson analyst Alexander Platt wrote in a report featured by However, reasons to avoid $IONQ include the company’s lack of profitability, the speculative and early-stage nature of quantum computing, the stock’s high valuation (price-to-sales... This included an $882 million loss on warrant liabilities – a non-cash accounting adjustment. The estimated fair value of warrants, which are marked as balance-sheet liabilities, went down when the company’s stock price went up more than six-fold in the year ending Sept. 2025,The main risks of owning growth stocks are high volatility, elevated valuations and lack of dividends.

Growth stocks are sensitive to market sentiment and economic conditions, and if they fail to meet high growth expectations, their prices can drop sharply. Rather than pay dividends, these companies reinvest profits to fuel expansion, so investors receive no regular income from these stocks.Nvidia, Iren and IonQ could make your portfolio more valuable – but weigh the opportunity... Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources. Plume CEO tips RWA to grow 3-5x in 2026 as it grows past crypto nativesThe RWA market could increase by three to five times in 2026, amid rising asset diversity and regulation, Plume CEO... Read more » Investing in high-growth companies with a long-term perspective is a proven strategy for building wealth, but not all fast-growing companies are created equal.

The opportunity lies in identifying stocks poised to capitalize on sustainable trends, with a minimal risk of degrading into obsolescence. The article highlights a small selection of growth stocks that meet these benchmarks. Brazilian aerospace company Embraer (ERJ) produces a fleet of commercial, business and defense jets. It is popular for its single-aisle E175-E2 commercial planes, the C-390 Millennium military transport aircraft and the Phenom 300, a top-seller in the light jet category for the last 12 years. The ERJ stock has climbed more than 125% in the past year, and returned to investment grade credit rating. Whether Embraer can disrupt the Boeing-Airbus duopoly, because of Boeing’s brutal year and Airbus’ supply-chain snags, is debatable.

However, the Brazilian plane maker appears strategically positioned to capitalize on its robust order backlog and strong performance across all of its segments. Embraer’s firm order backlog rose to $22.7 billion in the third quarter of 2024, marking its highest level in the past nine years. This provides visibility for steady cash flow in the years ahead. 2. Rising deliveries despite supply chain constraints Investors looking for a blend of red-hot winners and beaten-down cash cows have come to the right place.

With a little over two months left in the year and the major indexes hovering around all-time highs, many investors may be feeling uneasy about stock market valuations and how long the artificial intelligence... Whereas others may view AI as a game-changer that will boost productivity, earnings growth, and investment returns over the long run. Regardless of where you stand, it's a mistake to overhaul your investment strategy based on emotion. A better approach is to be selective by targeting companies you believe are worth their valuation, even if there's an economic downturn, a slowdown in AI spending, or any other factor that could throw... Here are five growth stocks I'm particularly excited about for 2026. With many AI stocks trading at premium valuations, investors need to ensure that they aren't just betting on one aspect of the AI value chain.

Nvidia (NVDA +1.50%), Oracle (ORCL 0.56%), and ASML (ASML +2.71%) are three completely different companies with multi-year growth potential from AI.

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