2 Unstoppable Growth Stocks to Buy Right Now for Under $1,000

Investors have had to deal with a lot of ups and downs in the economy over the past few years. Even though a bull market is now in full swing, recent market volatility has some investors worried about a more prolonged correction. This may or may not happen, and it doesn’t mean there aren’t great businesses worth investing in.

All markets can present opportunities if you are a long-term investor, especially if you commit your capital (let’s say $1,000 in this case) to quality stocks and plan to hold them for years rather than days or weeks . By focusing on stocks that align with your overall portfolio goals, financial outlook, and investment thesis, you can build a basket of stocks that will help turn that $1,000 investment into something much more.

The real challenge, of course, is finding the right stocks. To help you get started, here are two unstoppable stocks to invest $1,000 in.

1. Eli Lilly

The pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly (LLY 2.11%) has evolved more and more of late with its robust drug portfolio with ample and growing market opportunities. More attention has recently focused on Eli Lilly due to the success of its weight loss and diabetes drugs, marketed as Zepbound and Mounjaro, respectively. These medicines contain the same active ingredient, tirzepatide. Both drugs have already achieved blockbuster status.

Zepbound was approved for chronic weight management by the US Food and Drug Administration in November 2023, while Mounjaro was approved by the agency as early as 2022 for adults with type 2 diabetes. In the first half of 2024 alone, Mounjaro has brought in just $5 billion in total revenue, while Zepbound generated roughly $1.8 billion in revenue. That’s a notable chunk of the roughly $21 billion in total revenue reported by Eli Lilly. That’s a staggering 31% increase over the same period in 2023.

These drugs should drive billions in additional revenue annually for Eli Lilly over the next decade, and the company is actively working to broaden the potential base of patients who could benefit from a tirzepatide prescription. For example, the drug is being studied for uses that include reducing the risk of progression to type 2 diabetes among prediabetics. Eli Lilly also just made Zepbound available in single-dose vials through its own direct-to-consumer platform. Through Eli Lilly’s platform, patients can access certain prescribed medications and have them delivered directly with automatic payment options.

With this latest initiative, Eli Lilly hopes to ensure that those who are not eligible through savings cards, insurance or employer coverage are not excluded from the care they need. Case in point: A 2.5 mg dose of Zepbound for four weeks will cost a patient $399, less than half the list price of other glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs on the market.

Beyond weight loss and diabetes, Eli Lilly has other staples in its portfolio to build on, such as cancer drug Verzenio, as well as diabetes drugs Jardiance and Humalog. Sales of these three drugs alone are up 42%, 17%, and 30% year-over-year, respectively, in the first half of 2024, totaling about $5 billion. Eli Lilly is also insanely profitable, bringing in about $5.2 billion in profits for the first six months of 2024, up 68% from a year ago.

Eli Lilly is also acquisitive and just acquired a company called Morphic Holding. The acquisition expands the healthcare giant’s immunology drug franchise and specifically brings new potential gastroenterology therapies, including an experimental oral drug for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Eli Lilly looks like a great stock to buy and hold for the long term, while its top track record of paying and growing dividends is the icing on the cake. With a forward dividend rate of $5.20, income investors may find that these are all green flags that provide a compelling buy proposition for healthcare stocks.

2. Chewed

Online pet specialist chew (CHWY -0.52%) has had its ups and downs as a stock, and is currently on an uptrend, with shares up about 16% so far in 2024. While some investors worry about the company’s performance after a volatile period during its most severe pandemic, others are encouraged by the more reasonable (but sustainable) growth story emerging in 2024. Excessive pandemic-era growth levels should not be expected, but this company continues to grow with real potential for expansion in continuation.

For most people, pets are part of the family. Pet expenses may change when economic times are tough, but essential costs remain. In 2023, non-discretionary categories such as consumables and healthcare expenses accounted for 85% of Chewy’s net sales. But Chewy doesn’t just sell pet food and toys. It also has its own online pet telehealth service, a selection of pet health insurance plans, an online pet pharmacy that offers both compounded and regular prescriptions, its own line of pet supplements of company and many others.

Chewy recently launched veterinary clinics and animal hospitals as part of its expanding service network. It even has its own sponsored ads initiative to help generate revenue, where select pet brands can pay to market their products and services to Chewy shoppers on its flagship e-commerce platform.

In addition to minimal reliance on discretionary pet spending, Chewy derives the majority of its net sales from recurring sales rather than one-time sales. It does this through its Autoship program, which allows pet owners to set up recurring deliveries of their favorite products. More than three-quarters of Chewy’s net sales come from its Autoship program. Looking back over the last 12 months, Chewy brought in about $84 million in net income on $11 billion in revenue.

While Chewy may have more bumps as it adjusts to a new era of growth, the resilience and diversification of its underlying business model may bode well for shareholders over the long term.