Stocks to buy

If Warren Buffett was your financial advisor, he might steer you toward reliable blue-chip investments, not wildly speculative stocks to buy now. Put another way, you’re probably not going to find these enterprises listed among the holdings of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-B). However, BRK-B lacks the upside potential that these less-recognized enterprises deliver.

To be sure, there’s nothing wrong with the Buffett approach. He’s not called the Oracle of Omaha for nothing. On the flipside, if the data aggregated by Wikipedia is accurate, the Oracle is 92 years old. For the average American biological male, the average life expectancy is 73.2 years. And if Harvard Health Publishing is a respected publication, that life expectancy is falling. In other words, it’s important to consider stocks to buy now because you might not have the longevity of Buffet.

Plus, the Oracle eats fast food for breakfast, guzzles five cans of cola daily and “…demolishes cookies and chocolates,” according to Business Insider. He’s a genetic anomaly so you might not last as long as he does. On that note, here are the stocks to buy now.

Fathom Holdings (FTHM)

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Based in North Carolina, Fathom Holdings (NASDAQ:FTHM) is a national, technology-driven, real estate services platform integrating residential brokerage, mortgage, title, insurance, and Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings to brokerages and agents. That’s a mouthful. Basically, if you believe in the residential housing recovery, FTHM might be one of the stocks to buy now.

However, it’s a tricky proposition. Since the beginning of this year, FTHM shot up nearly 41%. On the flip side, shares declined by more than 23% in the trailing one-year period. Perhaps not surprisingly, then, investment resource Gurufocus warned that Fathom is a possible value trap. Still, on the optimistic side, Fathom enjoys a relatively strong balance sheet. Also, its three-year revenue growth rate pings at 32.5%, though that could fade out quickly if housing demand plummets.

Enticingly, Wall Street analysts peg FTHM as a consensus moderate buy. Their average price target lands at $8.50, implying almost 41% upside potential.

Magic Software (MGIC)

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Hailing from Israel, Magic Software (NASDAQ:MGIC) is a global enterprise software company that offers centralized integration platforms. Its solutions allow users to connect to their SaaS enterprise applications and automate their business processes. Despite the seeming relevancy, the market this year has taken a dim view on MGIC. Since the Jan. opener, shares slipped more than 11%. In the trailing one-year period, it’s down 17%.

However, those wanting to gamble on stocks to buy now for massive returns might have an opportunity with Magic. For one thing, Gurufocus labels MGIC as significantly undervalued. Objectively, MGIC trades at a trailing multiple of 17.38. As a discount to earnings, Magic ranks better than 67.93% of companies listed in the software space.

Operationally, Magic’s three-year revenue growth rate clocks in at 20.2%, better than 75.37% of the field. Also, its EBITDA growth rate during the same period is 17.8%, above 64.29%. Lastly, Barclays’ Tavy Rosner pegs MGIC a buy. The expert’s price target comes in at $23, implying over 61% upside potential.

Rush Street Interactive (RSI)

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Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Rush Street Interactive (NYSE:RSI) is one of the fastest-growing gaming companies in North America, launching six regional destination casinos within the past decade, according to its website. However, the market isn’t especially enthused about its upside prospects. Since the Jan. opener, RSI fell almost 15%. In the past 365 days, RSI gave up nearly 47% of its market value.

Nevertheless, when Rush Street claims that it’s one of the fastest-growing enterprises in its industry, it’s not messing around. The company’s three-year revenue growth rate prints 87.2%, ranked better than 99.34% of its peers. Of course, it’s questionable whether it can sustain this stratospheric sales expansion. And even with the robust top line, its trailing-year net margin sits at 5% below zero. For another positive, though, Rush Street commands a strong balance sheet. In particular, its cash-to-debt ratio hits 97.74, above 90% of the competition.

To close, analysts peg RSI as a consensus strong buy. Their average price target comes out to $6.78, implying nearly 117% upside potential. Thus, it could be one of the stocks to buy now.

The Lovesac Company (LOVE)

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Based in Stamford, Connecticut, The Lovesac Company (NASDAQ:LOVE) furniture retailer, specializing in a patented modular furniture system called Sactionals. It’s difficult to explain when you can just go to the company’s website to see what Sactionals imply. Anyways, Lovesac specializes in casual furniture that apparently appeals to young consumers. Sure enough, the market approves LOVE so far this year, with shares gaining 7% of equity value.

Now, in the trailing one-year period, LOVE did lose more than 29%. Also, Gurufocus labels Lovesac as a possible value trap. Should economic headwinds continue to impact households, LOVE could take a hit. On the other hand, Lovesac’s three-year revenue growth rate pings at 35.6%, above 95.62% of the competition. Also, its book growth rate during the same period impresses at 26.9%. With all that, LOVE still trades at 0.63 times trailing sales. In contrast, the sector median stat is a loftier 0.92 times.

Turning to Wall Street, analysts peg LOVE as a unanimous strong buy. Their average price target stands at $53.33, implying 126% upside potential. Thus, it could be one of the stocks to buy now for extreme speculators.

OmniAb (OABI)

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Headquartered in Emeryville, California, OmniAb (NASDAQ:OABI) is an advanced biotechnology specialist. Specifically, it provides its pharmaceutical industry partners with access to the most diverse antibody repertoires and cutting-edge screening technologies available, per its website. The purpose centers on enabling the discovery of next-generation therapeutics. Since the January opener, OABI gained nearly 12%, making it an exciting idea for stocks to buy.

Nevertheless, prospective investors must also be aware of the heavy risks. Since making its public market debut last year, OABI gave up more than 61% of its equity value. And to be fair, some of the financial metrics don’t provide much confidence. For example, its trailing-year net margin sits in negative territory. On the positive side, OmniAb enjoys a decently stable balance sheet. As well, its three-year revenue growth rate pings at 62.9%, above 85% of the competition. Also, with OABI trading at a sales multiple of 6.74, it’s undervalued. Lastly, analysts peg OABI as a unanimous strong buy. Their average price target stands at $9.40, implying over 142% upside potential.

VAALCO Energy (EGY)

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Calling Houston, Texas home, VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) engages in hydrocarbon exploration. Its upstream operations primarily focus on the Etame Marin block off the shores of Gabon. While the underlying energy market suffered from a disappointing lull (at least as far as the bulls are concerned), geopolitical rumblings demonstrated that anything can change in this sector. For now, EGY finds itself down almost 10% on a year-to-date basis.

Obviously, I can’t tell the future ahead of time. However, I expect the demand profile to shift in the northbound direction based again on geopolitical tensions and uncertainty. Heading to the financials, EGY seems awfully enticing. Gurufocus labels shares as significantly undervalued. Objectively, the market prices EGY at a forward multiple of 4.47, ranked better than 80.3% of companies in the oil and gas industry.

Operationally, Vaalco’s three-year revenue growth rate impresses at 51.8%, above 94% of its peers. Also, its book growth rate clocks in at 31.7%. Looking at the Street, analysts peg EGY as a moderate buy. Their average price target hits $10.10, implying 163% upside potential. Thus, it’s one of the stocks to buy if you’re swinging for the fences.

Prenetics Global (PRE)

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Based in Hong Kong, Prenetics Global (NASDAQ:PRE) is involved with decentralized healthcare. In particular, the company’s Circle Healthpod offers a rapid molecular detection system for all infectious diseases. This starts with Covid-19 followed by influenza. Moving forward, the company aims to include STDs on the list. While incredibly relevant, the market remains unconvinced about its viability. Since the Jan. opener, PRE fell nearly 52%.

It gets worse. In the past one-year period, PRE hemorrhaged over 88%. Therefore, if you’re going to put PRE on your radar of stocks to buy now, be aware of the risks. On the financial front, one glaring issue is its net margin, which sits at 69.06% below breakeven. And while its three-year revenue growth rate is 252.2%, this might not be sustainable.

On the other hand, Prenetics carries a strong balance sheet. Its cash-to-debt ratio pings at 24.71, ranked better than 84.03% of the competition. On a final note, Cantor Fitzgerald’s Ross Osborn pegs PRE a buy. Also, the expert’s price target clocks in at $6, implying over 574% upside potential.

On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.

A former senior business analyst for Sony Electronics, Josh Enomoto has helped broker major contracts with Fortune Global 500 companies. Over the past several years, he has delivered unique, critical insights for the investment markets, as well as various other industries including legal, construction management, and healthcare.

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