Growth is king once again. After a dismal 2022, high potential tech stocks are back in fashion. AI stocks have taken top billing amid breakthroughs in generative artificial intelligence applications. However, there are plenty of tech stocks with explosive growth to be found that are still at great entry prices today. These best tech stocks to buy have strong upside but haven’t yet seen their share prices rocket higher. That makes these seven promising tech stocks to invest in today.
Best Tech Stocks to Buy: Unity Software (U)
It’s time to give Unity Software (NYSE:U) a second chance. After going public at $52/share in 2020 amid a hot market for gaming stocks, shares would hit $200 by 2021. Since then, it’s been a much tougher game. Unity to an all-time low of $21 before rebounding to $43 today. Still, the stock is below its IPO price and way down from its 2021 peak.
Unity’s fall is understandable. The company’s core video game engine business is heavily tied to what’s perceived to be low-quality advertising on mobile games. It’s taken longer than expected to develop broader revenue streams. Expansions into other fields for Unity’s engine, such as e-commerce and architecture, still haven’t paid off in a dramatic fashion. Part of the initial hype cycle around Unity was tied to the metaverse and virtual reality. As interest for the metaverse dried up, Unity stock plunged. The recent Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Vision Pro announcement, however, has rekindled this excitement.
Specifically, Unity shares surged on news that it will be a key partner in helping to create the gaming ecosystem for Apple’s new augmented reality product. How large a market this will be remains to be seen. However, Unity has recently become profitable, and revenues are growing at a rapid rate. The business is on a fine footing, and the Apple news could offer dramatic upside on top of that.
Best Tech Stocks to Buy: DocuSign (DOCU)
DocuSign (NASDAQ:DOCU) was one of the biggest winners of the work-from-home movement. DOCU stock shot up from $80 in 2019 to $300 at the height of the remote work trend. Then a funny thing happened. As offices opened back up, investor enthusiasm turned to disgust. Today, DOCU stock is selling for less than $55/share. This marks a huge discount to where it was before the onset of COVID-19 to say nothing of DocuSign’s 2021 peak.
Did a $300 share price make sense? No. But $55 seems much too pessimistic as well. At this price, DOCU stock is going for just 21 times estimated fiscal year 2024 earnings. Meanwhile, the core business is still growing nicely, with revenues up 12% in the most recent quarter. DocuSign isn’t enjoying breathtaking growth anymore, but the use case for digitally signed documents remains as strong as ever.
Best Tech Stocks to Buy: Trimble (TRMB)
Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB) is a company focused on providing digital transformation services for a number of different industries. It provides tools to help companies survey land, plan optimal routes for things such as shipping and trucking, and optimize agricultural work and processes.
Many investors discovered Trimble thanks to Cathie Wood of Ark Invest. When she launched her Ark Space Exploration & Innovation ETF (NYSEARCA:ARKX), Trimble was the top holding. Even today, it remains the fund’s second-largest position today. However, interest in Ark funds has waned, and leading holdings like Trimble have sold off. But that could mark an opportunity.
As for Trimble specifically, at first, it might seem odd to put what’s primarily an agribusiness into a space ETF. However, there is something there around using satellite observations, big data, and AI processes to apply new efficiency techniques to ancient industries like farming and forestry. It’s not hard to imagine a time when these sorts of companies regain investor favor. In any case, at 20 times forward earnings, TRMB stock is now being offered at a fine starting price.
Endava (DAVA)
Endava (NYSE:DAVA) is a leading information technology shop.
The business model is a simple and highly profitable one: Outsourcing. Endava hires skilled IT professionals in cheaper labor markets such as Eastern Europe and South America. It then contracts out their services to large companies in wealthy markets such as the United States and United Kingdom. This labor arbitrage has led to rapid growth and favorable shareholder returns. Over the past 18 months, however, the IT outsourcers have plunged. The slowdown in the tech industry certainly hasn’t helped as IT budgets are trimmed. The business model also came into question to some degree after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine displaced many engineering employees located in those countries.
And DAVA stock is particularly on sale since a large part of its revenue base comes from banks, insurance companies, and payments firms. These customers have had a rough year, and thus it has put short-term pressure on Endava’s revenue growth. However, over the longer-term, analysts expect Endava to return to its historical 20% annualized revenue growth rate. Meanwhile, shares now go for just 20 times forward earnings.
Despegar.com (DESP)
Despegar.com (NYSE:DESP) is the largest online travel agent in Latin America. Originally from Argentina, Despegar is now a leading player in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil (where it operates under the name Decolar) among other markets. The business was hammered during the pandemic. Ultimately, DESP stock fell from its IPO price of $26/share to a low of $5. However, Despegar now appears set to lift off once again. Shares have jumped in recent weeks around excitement thanks to strong travel demand and booking trends in various Latin American markets.
Analysts expect the company to return to profitability in the latter half of 2023. Historically, it’s often a good time to buy growth stocks when they reach that inflection point of turning a profit. Throw in improving sentiment around both Latin America and e-commerce services, and Despegar could be set for further gains.
Paysafe (PSFE)
Paysafe (NYSE:PSFE) is a digital payments and financial services company. The firm was a widely-publicized SPAC with a prominent backer, Bill Foley. These factors arguably allowed Paysafe to obtain an overly-generous valuation at the time of its SPAC offering. Since then, however, Paysafe has lost roughly 90% of its value. PSFE stock recently executed a 10:1 reverse split, meaning that the firm came public at a split-adjusted $100 per share and is at just $11 today.
However, unlike many broken SPACs, Paysafe is far from ruined. The company is actually performing alright. Last quarter, revenues grew and topped analyst expectations. Additionally, the company was significantly profitable on an adjusted net income basis. It’s no secret that payments stocks have collapsed in the wake of a sharp slowdown in e-commerce growth since 2021. However, some firms, like Paysafe, have gotten thrown out with the bathwater.
Terran Orbital (LLAP)
For investors shooting for the stars, Terran Orbital (NYSE:LLAP) is an intriguing pick. The company designs and manufactures small satellites and is already in commercial production. It scored $94 million of revenues last year. Terran is a tiny company with a share price of $1.35 and a market capitalization of less than $250 million. But it has already established a ton of credibility. For example, defense contractor Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) invested $100 million into Terran last year to increase its manufacturing capacity.
Terran built on this framework in February, when it signed a gigantic deal. It announced that it had signed a $2.4 billion contract with Rivada Space Networks for a total of 300 spacecrafts. This will include 288 low-earth satellites and 12 spare units. This is a simply stunning deal, with $2.4 billion coming in at roughly 10 times today’s market capitalization for Terran Orbital.
Terran is a high-risk investment given its small size. It will almost certainly need to raise more capital to fulfill the Rivada contract and other future satellite orders. However, if it can grab the first-mover advantage in this emerging field, the shares could deliver tremendous returns.
On the date of publication, Ian Bezek held a long position in DESP, U, LMT, and DAVA stock. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.