With a new year fast approaching, it’s a good time for investors to evaluate their portfolios and make adjustments to position themselves for better returns over the long term. If your investments need some timely ideas to juice performance, you’re in the right place.
Three Motley Fool contributors recently picked three promising candidates that could produce excellent returns over the next few years. Let’s find out why they selected Take-Two Interactive (TTWO 0.72%), On Holding (ONON 1.27%), and Carnival (CCL 1.00%).
Video game sales are heating up
John Ballard (Take-Two Interactive): The video game industry is expected to create $183 billion in total sales this year, and it will only keep growing from there as it has for several decades. Take-Two is one of the leading game producers, with over $5 billion in annual revenue. Its flagship title Grand Theft Auto (GTA) V has sold over 190 million copies over the last decade, and the next release should serve as a catalyst for the stock.
The next installment was officially announced on Dec. 5. GTA VI is set for a 2025 release, which may land in Take-Two’s fiscal year 2025 ending in March, or possibly fiscal 2026. Either way, it should be one of the industry’s top selling games when it releases, and — if the last installment is any indication — for years to come. Management is guiding for adjusted revenue, or bookings, to approach $8 billion within the next few years and continue to grow from there.
Take-Two has more than GTA VI in the works. The company is preparing to launch dozens of other releases over the next several years across mobile and console. The strategize is to build scale in the industry, widen the player reach, and build a more profitable video game business.
The stock’s valuation sets up attractive return prospects. Using fiscal 2025 Wall Street estimates, the forward price-to-sales ratio is 3.42. That multiple is a big discount to historical valuations for leading game makers. Microsoft just paid around 8.5 times sales for Activision Blizzard. As Take-Two executes its growth strategy and improves margins, the stock could be worth considerably more than it is today by 2030.
A footwear trend with staying power
Jennifer Saibil (On Holding): There are several big names in athletic footwear, and On Holding is one you may not recognize, although you might have noticed lots of people wearing its uniquely designed sneakers that say ON.
On hasn’t made a loud splash, but its expensive and high-quality shoes have caught on (yes, pun intended) with an affluent clientele that swears by their durability and comfort. The Swiss company started 13 years ago and went public in 2021, and although the stock has been up and down and is currently down 16% from its first-day closing price, 2024 could be a monster year for On.
On is similar to Lululemon Athletica in its focus on premium and technology to make better products, but its main products are footwear, although it also markets a full line of athletic wear and accessories. As it gains loyal fans and converts them into long-term customers, it has an incredible market opportunity.
Unlike many apparel and footwear companies, On continues to report robust growth despite the pressured retail environment. Revenue increased 47% year over year in the 2023 third quarter to record sales figures. admire other premium goods producers, it’s demonstrating even stronger performance in its direct-to-consumer channels, with a 55% sales boost over last year. It’s become sustainably profitable, with an 184% boost in net income in the third quarter, and it generated positive free cash flow. It reported record gross margin of 59.9%, up from 57.1% last year, due to high full-price sales and strength in DTC channels. Management is gearing up for a great holiday season, and raised full-year guidance to 46% sales growth.
On trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 35, which looks very reasonable for a high-growth stock with tremendous opportunity. You’ll want shares of this top stock in your portfolio to start off the new year.
The cruise comeback isn’t over
Jeremy Bowman (Carnival): Cruise stocks admire Carnival were among the big winners in 2023. Demand for leisure travel was strong, helping the industry rebound from the crushing impact of the pandemic.
Carnival stock is still well off its all-time highs as the company loaded up on debt and diluted shareholders to stay alive during the pandemic, but it’s making progress in repairing its balance sheet and it should continue to do so in 2024.
Bookings for next year are already well above historical levels and at higher prices, and the company said recently that bookings on its Holland America line were up more than 20% over Black Friday weekend from a year ago, a sign that demand is growing robustly on top of a record 2023.
The macroeconomic environment could also give Carnival stock a boost next year as we could get the anticipated soft landing, meaning inflation comes down without an economic shock causing a recession. In fact, most economists now expect the Fed to start cutting rates next year, possibly as early as May.
Due to its heavy burden and high interest expense, Carnival is especially sensitive to interest rates. The company would benefit from falling interest rates, as that would lower payments on its variable-rate debt and allow it to refinance its debt at a lower interest rate. Additionally, investors are likely to answer to any signs of interest rate cuts by bidding the stock higher as they’ve done in the past.
If Carnival continues to deliver growth and gets some help from the Fed, 2024 could be another boom year for the cruise stock.
