UMB Financial : Top stock picks for momentum and growth

UMB's director of equity research, Will Reese, shares top stock picks for momentum and growth.

I recently had the opportunity to share some top stock picks for momentum and growth with U.S. News & World Report. When looking at the current equity market and potential upsides for companies that match the growth profile, I saw great potential with Nvidia (NVDA), DocuSign (DOCU) and CrowdStrike (CRWD).

Nvidia and DocuSign were included in the article round-up, but CrowdStrike wasn't, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to look more closely at that particular stock and where we see opportunity and potential risks.

CrowdStrike (CRWD)

CrowdStrike is a leader in endpoint protection and serves customers by protecting devices and networks. A significant increase in ransomware attacks is driving growth and demand for cybersecurity protection. The popularity of cryptocurrency is also partially to blame for the increased number of ransomware attacks. Ransomware attacks involve hackers taking over systems and demanding digital payments.

Gold Standard' provider, it is well positioned for growth.

When comparing 2019 to 2020, CrowdStrike increased its corporate endpoint market share from 6% to 9% as they outgrew legacy providers such as Symantec and McAfee. The endpoint security market also remains fragmented and grew at 14% in 2020. As the 'Gold Standard' provider, these items should help CrowdStrike remain well positioned for additional growth and share gains.

Despite shares rallying 25% this year, we see further upside of 25% due to rapid customer adoption from the heightened cybersecurity threat environment. Gaining market share and massive addressable market should drive 40% annualized revenue growth over the next several years.

Gartner forecasts that the corporate computer security market will grow more than 10% on average annually through 2024 versus 3% growth for information technology department spending. CrowdStrike estimates the addressable market at $44B in 2023, but with additional products, a $106B addressable market by 2025.

There are potential risks to consider. Competition from larger firms is the main risk, such as Microsoft that generates $10B in revenues annually from cybersecurity. The cybersecurity protection market is fragmented with low switching costs.

To read more about my other top stock picks for growth and momentum, read this article in U.S. News & World Report.

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