Large-cap companies are often well-established, profitable firms with long track records of delivering results for their customers and shareholders. Growth stocks are those considered by Wall Street to have above-average growth potential compared to their peers in the same industry or industrial sector. As an asset class, large-cap growth stocks offer relative stability, great capital appreciation potential and, in many cases, a good dividend income — all very attractive qualities to have in a long-term investment.
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More conservative investors with a lower risk tolerance appreciate large-cap growth stocks because they can be less volatile compared to small- or mid-sized value stocks. All stocks fluctuate up and down with the market and other factors, but shares of large-cap growth companies are usually less vulnerable to dramatic price swings and big drawdowns.
Large, growing companies often do business worldwide. In that sense, many large-cap growth stocks offer investors global diversification regardless of where they’re headquartered. An international presence can benefit shareholders by reducing risk through broad exposure to many countries in different regions of the world.
Many large-cap growth stocks are considered blue chips. They’ve been around for a long time, they have solid financials, strong revenue, good current and forward earnings, and decent dividends. With all of this in mind, here is a list of five high-quality, large-cap growth stocks to invest in today and hold for the future:
— Johnson Controls International PLC (ticker: JCI)
— Visa Inc. (V)
— Walmart Inc. (WMT)
— Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)
— Apple Inc. (AAPL)
Johnson Controls International PLC (JCI)
JCI is a $44 billion company that makes standard and custom-designed building products and integrated building systems for customers in the U.S., Asia, Europe and several other regions around the world. The company may be best known for its heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, but it’s also quite prominent in security, fire detection, refrigeration and energy-efficiency systems.
One of the fastest growing and most interesting aspects of the company’s business is what it calls its smart building solutions. It involves computer and cloud-based, data-driven hardware and software products commercial customers use to turn their properties into smart buildings. The products and services enhance the efficiency, comfort and safety of workspaces while making big improvements in the usability of existing systems.
In a recent research note, CFRA Equity Analyst Emily Nasseff Mitsch reiterated her “buy” rating on JCI. She noted healthy long-term sales growth and good prospects for smart and green building systems going forward.
JCI reported $3.50 in per-share earnings on $26.79 million in revenue for 2023. Nasseff Mitsch is estimating earnings of $3.56 per share and $28 million in revenue for 2024. The Wall Street consensus on JCI for 2024 is $3.61 in earnings and $27.8 million in revenue. The stock pays an annualized dividend of $1.48, which works out to a current yield of 2.3%.
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Visa Inc. (V)
Visa is a large-cap growth stock with an impressive market capitalization that tops $551 billion. The company is very well known in the consumer credit card industry and is becoming predominant in payment processing as well. V has been able to maintain its long-term leadership status by developing and implementing cutting-edge financial technology, or fintech, that has kept it on the forefront of the financial transaction processing and reporting business.
The company can also be looked at as a fast-growing cybersecurity firm. In recent years, Visa has established itself as a global leader in digital fraud detection and mitigation technology.
Visa’s revenue growth is truly impressive. Ten years ago, the company ended its 2014 fiscal year with $12.7 billion in revenue. For fiscal 2024, Wall Street estimates Visa will report $35.8 billion in revenue. If it hits that number, Visa will achieve 182% revenue growth over a decade.
V is not an income stock, but it will distribute $2.08 per share in dividends in 2024 for an annualized yield of 0.75%.
Walmart Inc. (WMT)
With more than 4,600 brick-and-mortar locations in the U.S. and a well-established and fast-growing e-commerce business, WMT is a retail powerhouse. In fact, considering that Wall Street estimates $673.4 billion in revenue for its current fiscal year of 2025, this $488 billion, 62-year-old company remains the largest retailer in the world when measured by total sales.
WMT has three divisions — Walmart U.S.A., Walmart International and Sam’s Club — and all of them are booming. It operates large supercenter stores that all include thousands of items for sale and a full inventory of fresh and packaged groceries, smaller stores they call Walmart Neighborhood Markets and big box, member-only warehouse clubs that compete head-to-head with Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) locations.
Year to date, WMT stock has appreciated about 13.8% and pays a current dividend of 83 cents a year, giving it a 12-month yield of 1.37%.
Morgan Stanley has an “overweight” rating on WMT, while CFRA maintains a “buy” rating and RBC Capital rates the stock “outperform.”
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)
Microsoft has a market cap of more than $3 trillion, making it more than a large-cap growth stock; it’s a mega-cap growth stock. MSFT is one of the largest and best known technology companies in the world. It offers a wide variety of software, hardware components, gaming systems and cloud computing services for individuals and institutions worldwide. In addition to its ubiquitous Office Suite products, MSFT is the preeminent player in computer operating systems.
Brad Sills and Adam Bergere cover MSFT for Morgan Stanley Equity research. In their latest research report on April 1, they maintained their “buy” rating on the stock and reiterated their $480 12-month price target. If the stock hits that target, current shareholders will enjoy 12.6% upside from here.
As the rational for their optimistic opinion, Sills and Bergere cited that MSFT is positioned very well for sustained growth over the next three to five years. They were especially impressed with the long-term potential of the firm’s Azure cloud infrastructure platform and growth in the gaming segment.
Income investors will appreciate that MSFT has raised its annual dividend every year for 22 consecutive years. The current annualized dividend is $3.00, which equates to a 0.71% yield.
Apple Inc. (AAPL)
AAPL is one of the most widely held stocks in the world, and it’s no wonder that it shores up this list.
An undisputed technology giant with a market cap of more than $2.6 trillion, Wall Street estimates that AAPL will generate $387.2 billion in revenue and report $6.55 in earnings per share for 2024. Next year, analysts expect even more from the company. The 2025 revenue estimate is a staggering $411.9 billion, with earnings projected at $7.15. These are lofty figures that will be difficult to achieve, but if AAPL does deliver, it would mean 6.3% top-line and 9.1% bottom-line one-year growth. That would be extraordinary for such a large company.
AAPL has been a consistent large-cap growth stock performer for much of the 21st century. The company achieved this by generating unprecedented levels of brand loyalty among its many millions of customers around the world. This and its commitment to developing new and innovative products should fuel growth well into the future.
According to the company’s latest round of financial reports released in December 2023, AAPL had more than $73 billion in cash on hand at the close of 2023. Some of that cash is earmarked to fund the company’s aggressive stock buyback program, which should support the stock price going forward.
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5 Best Large-Cap Growth Stocks to Invest In Right Now originally appeared on usnews.com
