Recent weeks have witnessed a cooling trend in the United States economy. They see this due to the consumer spending, inflation and the labor market decelerating. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, inflation-adjusted personal spending modestly grew 0.2% last month. Separate data revealed that recurring applications for unemployment benefits have surged to the highest level in approximately two years. However, investors have been keen on navigating the evolving market landscape spurred by changing consumer behaviors. As such, millennials are ditching cable for streaming services, and these three stocks are set to grow. Read on to learn the best stocks to buy in the middle of this trend.
Amazon (AMZN)
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) is an online e-commerce, cloud networking, and streaming platform. As an industry giant, Amazon has roots in nearly every online industry, and AMZN grew 70.5% YTD.
Revenue was reported at $143 billion, representing a 12.57% YoY growth. Net income and revenue reached $9.88 billion and $0.98, or YoY increases of more than 235%. Prime Video has reached revenue values of 120 million in 2019, 150 million in 2020, and 200 million in 2021, to 220 million in 2022.
Driving factors behind Prime Video’s growth have been the one-year displaced addition of the NFL’s Thursday Night Football broadcast. This is aired weekly for Prime subscribers. With viewers wanting to watch the weekly game, Amazon broke records for viewership. This proved simple as more than 16.6 million viewers tuned into the program. The continual broadcast will continue to attract buyers, setting Prime Video up as a strong player in the streaming industry for years to come.
AMZN stock is set to grow as Amazon Prime is steadily growing past projected values. AMZN easily earns its spot on our list of best stocks to buy for streaming services.
Roku (ROKU)
Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) is the leading streaming TV network in the United States that focuses on making money through advertisements. The company has amassed more than 70 million viewers as of 2023. The stock is up 159.34% YTD.
Roku reported solid Q3 financials, with revenue of $912 million beating expectations by $56.23 million. The company grew 19.8% YoY, EPS of -$2.33 missing expectations by $0.23, and growing profit of $369 million growing 3% YoY. Active accounts of 75.8 million increased by 2.3 million QoQ. Streaming hours of 26.7 billion increased by 4.9 billion hours YoY.
Roku has strategically partnered with several companies over this year, building on its powerful partner network. At the end of August, Roku partnered with TV Azteca to allow brands and agencies to purchase TV streaming advertisements on Roku’s platform in Mexico through TV Azteca, growing its business in Mexico. Roku also partnered with Spotify, joining the Spotify CTV Partner Network as its initial partner. Spotify will be introducing video ads on its Roku app, reaching its global audience of more than 500 million. Most recently, Roku partnered with Unity to help mobile app businesses expand their app install campaigns to TV streaming. By combining Roku’s premium inventory with Unity’s user acquisition technology, the partnership can bring mobile app marketers a seamless experience in executing TV streaming campaigns.
Yahoo! Finance reports 25 analysts with a mean one-year price target of $85.92, ranging from $50.00 to $116.00. Many notable firms have also upgraded their ratings of the stock. Roku’s unique business model and growing partner network sets the company up for future growth. Roku is one of the best stocks to buy as of now.
Spotify Technology (SPOT)
Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) is a digital music streaming service that is leading the industry with a more than 30% market share, double that of any other service.
SPOT had excellent Q3 earnings, with revenue of $3.67 billion growing 10.6% YoY, EPS of $0.36, and monthly active users up 26% representing its 2nd largest Q3 performance. The company also found success with subscribers growing 16% YoY to 226 million, allowing the company to return to profitability.
Yahoo! Finance reports 29 analysts with a mean one-year price target of $189.80, ranging from $148.09 to $250.15.
Another key catalyst for Spotify is its widely popular Spotify Wrapped, a yearly campaign that recaps users on their Spotify usage for the year. The campaign has only grown larger and larger every single year since its inception in 2016, and managed to break several all-time highs in 2022, including more than a 30% user engagement increase. The campaign historically leads to large Q4 success for the company.
Spotify’s return to profitability, Google partnership expansion, and Spotify Wrapped campaign make this a great time to buy into this large music streaming stock. If you are looking for a solid stock for streaming services, Spotify is one of the best stocks to buy.
On the date of publication, Michael Que did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
The researchers contributing to this article did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.