Investors looking for businesses that are well entrenched in their industries and can run circles around the popular market barometer, the S&P 500 (^GSPC 0.40%) index, are in the right place.
The stock market has historically returned about 10% per year. If you want to beat the average stock, you should look for solid businesses that are growing earnings per share at above-average rates. Here are two growth stocks that outperformed the S&P 500 over the last five years and can do it again.
1. Amazon
Amazon (AMZN 1.34%) is a large business with a $2.4 trillion market capitalization, but it has multiple levers to drive the growth needed to outperform the market.
On a trailing-12-month basis through the third quarter, operating income has increased 130% to $60 billion. Much of this was driven by cost reductions on the retail side of the business. Amazon’s ability to show a significant increase in profit while investing in several initiatives — including artificial intelligence (AI) for cloud and retail customers, content for Prime Video, and new fulfillment centers — shows why it’s a business built to last.
The strong growth the company is experiencing in non-retail services, which now make up the majority of its $620 billion in annual revenue, can drive further increases in profits to power the stock higher. Its advertising services produced $53 billion in sales over the last year, with revenue up 19% year over year in the third quarter excluding currency changes.
“Even with this growth, it’s important to realize we’re at the very beginning of what’s possible in our video advertising,” CEO Andy Jassy said on the second-quarter earnings call.
But most of Amazon’s operating profit comes from its cloud computing business, Amazon Web Services, where it still has a lot of opportunity, as noted by last quarter’s 19% year-over-year revenue increase.
Shares trade at a high price-to-earnings multiple of 37 based on 2025 earnings estimates. But that seems fair considering the growth in high-margin revenue streams that can expand margins. Analysts expect the company to grow earnings at an annualized rate of 23% over the next several years, which should pave the way for market-beating returns.
2. MercadoLibre
MercadoLibre (MELI -1.22%) offers fintech services and an online marketplace for consumers across Latin America. It is ultimately benefiting from the tailwinds of the Latin American e-commerce market that provide a long runway of growth.
MercadoLibre has consistently reported very high rates of growth, but e-commerce penetration remains low in Latin America. Unique active buyers on its marketplace grew 21% year over year, which helped drive a 35% year-over-year increase in revenue.
It’s continuing to expand its fulfillment centers, and management plans to more than double capacity in Brazil by the end of 2025. This will expand same-day delivery coverage by 40%, which should encourage higher order frequency from customers.
Despite the company’s consistent high growth, shares trade at their lowest price-to-sales ratio (P/S) in 15 years. The stock’s P/S multiple is currently 5.29 — below its past average of 10. At this valuation, investors should expect it to more or less deliver returns consistent with the underlying growth in the business.
The stock has doubled over the last two years and continues to trade around the same P/S multiple. With management also starting to focus on growing the company’s profit margin, there’s good reason to believe it is still undervalued. Analysts expect the company to grow earnings per share at 30% annually in the coming years, which should pave the way for market-smashing returns for MercadoLibre shareholders.
John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. John Ballard has positions in MercadoLibre. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and MercadoLibre. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
