Finding top-tier growth stocks to buy and hold for the long-term (which can be hard to define, but I’m going to say a decade or longer) can be difficult. That said, there are a number of top Canadian options I have on my radar that I think are worth considering by investors of most risk tolerance levels and ages.
Among the leading companies I continue to tout as a top option for investors seeking tech exposure outside of the U.S. is Shopify (TSX: SHOP).
Here’s why I think this mega-cap Canadian stock is worth buying right now and holding onto.
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A clear long-term growth story
Since Shopify’s IPO in 2015, this stock’s split-adjusted return over a little more than a decade is more than 7,400%. Yup, you read that right – more than 74 times its original offering price. For early investors, this was a great bet.
Much of the gains Shopify has seen has come in recent years, with the pandemic providing the most notable driver. With global government shutdowns, companies had to resort to setting up online shops to survive. Since then, e-commerce sales have continued to grow at roughly double the pace (or more) than that of bricks-and-mortar retail. That’s a trend I expect to continue.
In Shopify’s most recent quarterly results, this picture has been maintained. The company’s revenue grew by more than 30%, with the stock providing a free cash flow margin of 17% (very impressive) and strong bottom-line growth.
I think that so long as investors believe that underlying growth trends supporting the e-commerce revolution remain in place, Shopify continues to be the top way to play this space.
Valuation matters
On the way higher, Shopify has maintained an elevated valuation multiple. There are good reasons for this.
A company that previously grew its revenue at a triple-digit pace (and took a while to get profitable), many investors drew parallels to other major e-commerce and tech players that have since seen their earnings take off. That’s been the case for Shopify as well, with the company solidly profitable.
Now, this stock still trades at a forward price-earnings multiple of 67 times earnings and more than 13 times sales. That’s not cheap. But compared to where this stock has traded in the past, some could argue this is a relative bargain for those willing to jump aboard.
I think that so long as Shopify’s top and bottom-line growth rates can continue to remain above the 20% threshold for the next five years, this is a stock that will end up looking cheap in hindsight. For now, there’s little to dissuade me from the idea that this trend can’t continue.
