3 Market Beating Stocks to Buy for Under $100

You don’t have to look at the top tech stocks to find good investments to buy and hold. There are many good stocks you can buy for under $100 that are beating the market today and may continue to do so for years to come. The businesses listed below have solid fundamentals and with some promising growth opportunities, it may not be too late to invest in them.

AstraZeneca (AZN -3.21%), chew (CHWY -3.65%)and Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG -0.58%) they’re all doing exceptionally well this year, and here’s why they can be solid investments to hang on to for the long term.

1. AstraZeneca

Shares in healthcare company AstraZeneca are up 30% this year and trade around $88, but based on analyst forecasts, the stock is valued at a forward price-to-earnings multiple of just 22. The company has some upside aggressive and high, which make this an attractive investment to buy and hold.

AstraZeneca has nearly 200 projects underway and, with a focus on many therapeutic areas including oncology, cardiovascular, respiratory, rare diseases and others, has no shortage of opportunities for growth. In the first half of this year, its sales rose 15% to $25.6 billion, and reported earnings per share rose 13% to $2.65. By the end of the decade, the company expects its top line value to reach $80 billion, which would be a 75% increase from the $46 billion reported last year.

As a leading healthcare company and a growth-focused business, AstraZeneca stock appears to be in a great position to continue outperforming the markets in the near future.

2. Chewed

Online pet food retailer Chewy is another stock having a good year. The stock is around $29, and its year-to-date gains of 21% are a few points better than S&P 500yields of 18%. With a growing business and improved margins, the company appears to be in good financial shape.

In its most recent quarterly earnings report, for the quarter ended July 28, Chewy’s net sales totaled $2.9 billion and rose about 3 percent year-over-year. And it reported an operating profit of $32.1 million, a significant improvement over the $16.7 million loss it suffered in the year-ago period.

Pet spending has continued to rise over the years, along with the increase in population and the number of pet-owning households. Analysts at Grand View Research project that the global pet food market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 4.4% by the end of the decade, making it a good industry to count on for a stable and consistent growth.

Now, with Chewy’s business model looking stronger and potentially profitable on a more consistent basis, it could be a good stock to buy and own.

3. Chipotle Mexican Grill

One of the best restaurant stocks I own is Chipotle Mexican Grill. The business is associated with strong growth and for good reason. It has been able to grow its operations without having to rely heavily on price increases. It is also expanding its footprint to reach more markets as there is still plenty of potential for the company to grow its top and bottom line in the future.

Its comparable store growth rate was more than 11 percent for the quarter ended in June, during which the company also opened 52 new locations. For the full year, Chipotle expects its comparable sales growth rate to be in the mid- to high-single digits. While this is a small slowdown from the current rate, it would still be an impressive performance against inflation, especially with most of its growth coming from increased transactions rather than a large increase in prices.

Chipotle’s stock has struggled of late since news of its CEO’s departure Starbucks made investors a little worried about the future of the company. However, the stock is still up about 23% this year, closing at just over $56 last week.

And with COO Scott Boatwright taking over, it may not necessarily lead to a drastic change in Chipotle’s overall vision and growth strategy. At more than 50 times forward earnings, Chipotle’s stock still trades at a premium, but for such a high-growth stock, it may be a justified premium to pay, especially if you’re willing to wait for the long haul.