The US market has been on a tear this year.
The S&P 500 Index and NASDAQ Composite Index have both hit all-time highs as technology stocks rallied.
As of 3 July, the bellwether S&P 500 Index is up 16.8% while the technology stock-heavy index NASDAQ Composite Index is up more than 23%.
Even with this impressive performance, there are pockets of stocks that have outperformed the index.
Here are four growth stocks that did better than both indices and look well-positioned to continue outperforming the market.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META)
Meta Platforms is one such company, with its share price soaring by 47% year-to-date (YTD).
The social media behemoth, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, posted a strong set of earnings for its first quarter of 2024 (1Q 2024).
Revenue jumped 27% year on year to US$36.4 billion while operating profit surged by 91% year on year to US$13.8 million as costs and expenses increased by just 6% year on year.
This operating leverage allowed Meta Platforms to announce a more than doubling of its 1Q 2024 net profit to US$12.4 billion, up from just US$5.7 billion a year ago.
The business also generated a healthy positive free cash flow of US$12.8 billion, 79% above the US$7.2 billion churned out in the previous corresponding period.
The company also saw its family daily active people (DAP) rise from 3.02 billion in 1Q 2023 to 3.24 billion in 1Q 2024.
There could be more to come from Meta Platforms.
The company debuted its new artificial intelligence (AI) assistant named Llama 3 back in April and has incorporated it into all its products.
It has also developed a new homegrown chip to power these AI services as it aims to decrease reliance on supplies such as Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA).
The company is committed to spending as much as US$35 billion this year to support AI, including data centres and hardware.
Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX)
Netflix is the market leader in streaming television and has delivered a plethora of original content such as movies, TV shows, and documentaries to its members.
Shares of the streaming company have done well this year, surging by nearly 46% YTD to US$682.51.
Netflix reported a robust set of earnings for 1Q 2024 with revenue growing 14.8% year on year to US$9.4 billion.
Operating profit increased at a faster clip of 53.6% year on year to US$2.6 billion with operating margin expanding from 21% to 28.1%.
Net profit came in at US$2.3 billion, up nearly 79% from US$1.3 billion a year ago.
The business has continued to churn out healthy positive free cash flow of US$2.1 billion for the quarter, continuing the trend of free cash flow generation for every quarter last year.
Paid membership numbers are also encouraging, climbing 16% year on year to a new record of 269.6 million.
Management revealed that the company’s share of TV viewing is less than 10% in every country, implying that there is ample room for further growth.
Netflix is also broadening its content slate to include live events such as comedy, sports, and music shows.
Crowdstrike (NASDAQ: CRWD)
Crowdstrike is a cybersecurity firm with a cloud-native platform that protects clients’ workloads, identities, and data.
Cloudstrike’s share price has shot up 56.8% YTD and is just slightly off its 52-week high of US$394.64.
The company reported a strong set of earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (1Q FY2025) ending 30 April 2024.
Revenue climbed 33% year on year to US$921 million and the business generated an operating profit of US$6.9 million, reversing the prior year’s operating loss.
Because of a sharp increase in interest income, Crowdstrike saw net profit hit US$42.8 million.
Free cash flow generation was US$323 million, up nearly 42% from the US$227.8 million generated a year ago.
In an indication of better days to come, the business reported that annual recurring revenue jumped 33% year on year to US$3.65 billion.
The cybersecurity company has a total addressable market (TAM) of US$100 billion this year for its AI-native cloud security platform business.
By 2028, this TAM should grow to US$225 billion, underscoring the significant growth opportunities for the business.
Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL)
Royal Caribbean, or RCL, is a leading cruise company with a global fleet of 65 ships travelling to around 1,000 destinations around the world.
The company has three distinct cruise brands – Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises.
RCL’s share price has shot up 29.3% YTD as demand for holidays surged with the easing of all pandemic restrictions.
The cruise company saw an improved financial performance for 1Q 2024.
Revenue increased by 29.2% year on year to US$3.7 billion while operating profit more than doubled year on year to US$750 million.
Net profit came in at US$360 million, a welcome reversal from the net loss of US$48 million in 1Q 2023.
RCL also churned out a positive free cash flow of US$1.1 billion for the quarter, in line with the previous year.
The company also increased its guidance for 2024 as it enjoyed a record level of bookings for its cruises.
Two new ships, Utopia of the Seas and Silver Ray, are set to launch in the coming months and management also announced an order for a seventh Oasis Class ship.
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Disclosure: Royston Yang owns shares of Meta Platforms.
