The best-performing stocks typically have robust sales growth, increasing margins, and rising returns on capital, and those that can maintain this trifecta year in and year out often become the legends of the investing world.
The bottom line is that over the long term, earnings growth goes hand in hand with the biggest winners. On that note, here are three market-beating stocks that deserve a spot on your list.
Datadog (DDOG)
Five-Year Return: +81.1%
Named after a database the founders had to painstakingly look after at their previous company, Datadog (NASDAQ:DDOG) provides a software platform that helps organizations monitor and secure their cloud applications, infrastructure, and services.
Why Are We Bullish on DDOG?
- Customers view its software as mission-critical to their operations as its ARR has averaged 27.6% growth over the last year
- Software is difficult to replicate at scale and results in a premier gross margin of 80%
- User-friendly software enables clients to ramp up spending quickly, leading to the speedy recovery of customer acquisition costs
Datadog’s stock price of $141 implies a valuation ratio of 11.8x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Booking (BKNG)
Five-Year Return: +78.1%
Formerly known as The Priceline Group, Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:BKNG) is the world’s largest online travel agency.
Why Do We Like BKNG?
- Solid 15.1% annual revenue growth over the last three years underscores its platform’s appeal to consumers
- Share repurchases over the last three years enabled its annual earnings per share growth of 28.9% to outpace its revenue gains
- BKNG is a free cash flow machine with the flexibility to invest in growth initiatives or return capital to shareholders
Booking is trading at $169.73 per share, or 12.3x forward EV/EBITDA. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free.
Parker-Hannifin (PH)
Five-Year Return: +182%
Founded in 1917, Parker Hannifin (NYSE:PH) is a manufacturer of motion and control systems for a wide variety of mobile, industrial and aerospace markets.
Why Could PH Be a Winner?
- Healthy operating margin of 18.7% shows it’s a well-run company with efficient processes, and its operating leverage amplified its profits over the last five years
- Share buybacks catapulted its annual earnings per share growth to 18.5%, which outperformed its revenue gains over the last five years
- Impressive free cash flow profitability enables the company to fund new investments or reward investors with share buybacks/dividends, and its rising cash conversion increases its margin of safety
At $884.55 per share, Parker-Hannifin trades at 27.4x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Stocks We Like Even More
ONE MORE THING: Top 5 Growth Stocks. The biggest stock winners almost always had one thing in common before they ran. Revenue growing like crazy. Meta. CrowdStrike. Broadcom. Our AI flagged all three. They returned 315%, 314%, and 455%, respectively.
Find out which 5 stocks it's flagging for this month - FREE. Get Our Top 5 Growth Stocks for Free HERE.
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.