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3 Stocks Investors Should Buy Hand Over Fist

newsfeedback@fool.com (Keithen Drury)
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⚡ Quantum Brief
Microsoft’s stock is trading at a historic low valuation despite its AI-driven growth, with Azure revenue surging 39% YoY in Q2 2026 and a $625 billion backlog signaling sustained demand. Nvidia’s AI chip dominance continues, with Q4 revenue up 73% and Q1 guidance projecting 77% growth, yet its forward P/E ratio remains near S&P 500 levels, suggesting undervaluation. The Trade Desk, a digital ad platform, is exploring a partnership with OpenAI to integrate ads into ChatGPT, potentially reigniting growth after recent slowdowns. All three stocks—Microsoft, Nvidia, and The Trade Desk—are trading below all-time highs, presenting what analysts call "screaming values" amid broader market uncertainty. Investors are urged to capitalize on these discounts before market sentiment shifts, as each company’s growth trajectory appears underestimated by current valuations.
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By Keithen Drury – Mar 15, 2026 at 2:00PM ESTKey PointsMicrosoft has rarely reached this valuation level in the past decade.Nvidia continues to defy expectations as AI chip demand surges.A new partnership for The Trade Desk could boost revenue. Even as the stock market seesaws with uncertainty, there are a handful of screaming values that I think investors should consider scooping up today. I've got three of them that are trading at deep discounts to where they should be, and it seems that it's only a matter of time before the rest of the market catches on and sends these three higher. At the top of my investment list are Microsoft (MSFT 1.57%), Nvidia (NVDA 1.56%), and The Trade Desk (TTD +2.96%). All three of these stocks are well off their all-time highs, but if investors trusted the direction they are heading, they would be much higher. Image source: Getty Images. Microsoft Microsoft is thriving in the AI build-out. It has become a facilitator, and instead of spending billions of dollars training a generative AI model, it's using that capital to build out computing infrastructure that it can rent out to AI developers who are. This is the primary reason to invest in Microsoft, and its cloud computing business unit, Azure, which powers these workloads, is doing great. During the second quarter of fiscal year 2026 (ended Dec. 31), Azure's revenue rose by 39% year over year. For all of the money that Microsoft is spending on AI computing hardware, that represents a great return on investment, but it's not done yet. Microsoft has a $625 billion backlog that it's still churning through, so there is a massive amount of contracted business already on the books waiting to be used up. Despite this, Microsoft's stock trades at a historically low valuation. I'm using the operating price-to-earnings ratio because it ignores the effects of investment gains (like Microsoft's OpenAI investment), and it gives investors a bit more clarity into the historical valuation picture without the effects of one-time events. MSFT Operating PE Ratio data by YCharts Microsoft's valuation today is near the low end of where it has traded over the past decade, making today's price tag a screaming deal. ExpandNASDAQ: MSFTMicrosoftToday's Change(-1.57%) $-6.32Current Price$395.54Key Data PointsMarket Cap$2.9TDay's Range$394.24 - $404.8052wk Range$344.79 - $555.45Volume1.4MAvg Vol34MGross Margin68.59%Dividend Yield0.88% Nvidia If you thought Microsoft's stock was cheap, wait until you see Nvidia's. Nvidia makes graphics processing units (GPUs), which have been heavily utilized in the AI build-out. This has caused Nvidia to soar to become the world's largest company, but it's far from being done. During Q4, its revenue rose 73%, and management gave guidance for 77% growth in Q1. Nvidia believes that global data center capital expenditures will rise to $3 trillion to $4 trillion by 2030, which is a huge uptick from today's already large levels. ExpandNASDAQ: NVDANvidiaToday's Change(-1.56%) $-2.87Current Price$180.28Key Data PointsMarket Cap$4.4TDay's Range$179.94 - $186.1052wk Range$86.62 - $212.19Volume6MAvg Vol175MGross Margin71.07%Dividend Yield0.02% So, the likelihood is that we're a long way away from finding our spending ceiling on AI computing hardware, and Nvidia is set to profit from this build-out trend for many years. Despite that, its stock trades for a cheap price tag of 22.1 times forward earnings, nearly the same as the S&P 500, which trades for 21.7. This valuation indicates that Nvidia's growth this year will be impressive, but could slow down after that. However, projections indicate that this isn't the case, so investors should use this opportunity to buy Nvidia stock.

The Trade Desk Last is The Trade Desk, which is much smaller than Nvidia and Microsoft.

The Trade Desk operates a buy-side ad platform that pairs advertisers with ideal spots to advertise on the internet. This has been a successful business model, but its growth has slowed recently. ExpandNASDAQ: TTDThe Trade DeskToday's Change(2.96%) $0.79Current Price$27.31Key Data PointsMarket Cap$13BDay's Range$26.20 - $27.5552wk Range$21.08 - $91.45Volume496KAvg Vol17MGross Margin78.63% However, there could be a new catalyst that could kick-start The Trade Desk's growth. It was reportedly in talks with OpenAI, the makers of ChatGPT, on how to implement ads on its platform. This could be a real game changer for the stock and cause its growth rate to accelerate. If it does, The Trade Desk's stock will be primed to make a huge run, as it currently trades at a dirt cheap 14 times forward earnings. That's a huge discount to the market despite past success and market-matching growth. As a result, I think it looks like a compelling investment opportunity. Read NextMar 14, 2026 •By Daniel SparksWhy I've Changed My Mind on Microsoft StockMar 14, 2026 •By Keithen Drury4 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks at the Top of My Buy List for MarchMar 13, 2026 •By Keithen DruryIs Microsoft Stock a Buy Now?Mar 12, 2026 •By Leo SunHere's Why Microsoft Is Still the Safest AI Stock You Can Own in 2026Mar 11, 2026 •By Keithen Drury3 Unstoppable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks to Buy in MarchMar 10, 2026 •By Trevor JennewineSoftware Bear Market: 2 AI Stocks With 42% and 47% Upside to Buy Now, According to Wall StreetAbout the AuthorKeithen Drury is a contributing Motley Fool technology analyst covering AI, semiconductors, cybersecurity, and SaaS stocks. In addition to The Motley Fool, Keithen is a mechanical engineer and has held roles at Honeywell and smaller industrial companies like Brand Hydraulics and Lincoln Industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Dordt University.TMFTripleOptionStocks MentionedMicrosoftNASDAQ: MSFT$395.54(-1.57%)-$6.32NvidiaNASDAQ: NVDA$180.28(-1.56%)-$2.87The Trade DeskNASDAQ: TTD$27.34(+3.07%)+$0.82*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.

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