In this article, we will look at the 12 Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off.
On February 19, Citi’s Tyler Radke appeared on a CNBC Television interview to share his take on the software selloff that has been pulling the market lower. Radke noted that the recent selloff is unprecedented, particularly given the solid Q4 2025 earnings. He added that most companies have exceeded expectations, raised outlooks, and formed new business partnerships, yet the market continues to sell. On the bright side, Radke noted a recent positive as HubSpot reported earnings and has been up for 3 days in a row since the release.
Radke said that the the selloff has expanded beyond the software sector which suggests that we might be at the bottom of the selloff with a reversal around the corner. However, the analyst cautions investors to be selective while choosing stocks due to the volatility. He noted that Citi likes companies that have the best AI story. Radke’s favorite names include hyperscalers and companies that have proven business models, allowing them to monetize and generate revenue from AI.
With that let’s take a look at the 12 Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off.
Stocks
Our Methodology
We used screeners to identify stocks for which analysts expect more than 50% upside in the next 12 months, and limited our final selection to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. These stocks are also popular among analysts and elite hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 427.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 264 percentage points (see more details here).
12 Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off
12. Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU)
Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 17, Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) announced expanding its partnership with Wix, which is a platform to build websites. The expanded partnership is based on the earlier integration of Intuit’s Mailchimp with the Wix platform.
Management noted that they aim to provide small businesses a smoother way to handle finances and online presence from a single platform. As part of the extended collaboration, Wix users would now be able to access QuickBooks Online directly. Moreover, QuickBooks users would be able to build and launch customized Wix websites right from their Intuit dashboard. Both companies have also tied in the marketing building on the existing CRM data synchronization between Wix and Intuit’s Mailchimp.
Joshua Hofmann, VP Global Partner Ecosystems, Intuit QuickBooks, noted:
“The combined power of Wix’s website builder platform with QuickBooks AI-powered financial management tools will help businesses be more productive with streamlined workflows and have access to data-driven insights that lead to better business decisions that drive overall growth.”
Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) is a California-based company that offers products and services, including financial management, payments and capital, and marketing solutions. Founded in 1983, the company operates in four segments: Global Business Solutions, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.
11. DoorDash, Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH)
DoorDash, Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 18, DoorDash, Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH) released its fiscal Q4 2025 earnings. The company grew its quarterly revenue by 37.66% year-over-year to $3.96 billion, but fell short of expectations by $31.03 million. The EPS of $1.27 also fell short of the Street’s consensus by $0.02.
Management noted fiscal 2025 to be a year of balanced growth and increased profitability driven by strong momentum in US restaurants, expansion in grocery and retail presence, international growth, and product innovation.
Notably, total orders during fiscal Q4 2025 grew by 32% year-over-year to $903 million. Moreover, the Marketplace Gross Order Value reached $29.7 billion, reflecting 39% year-over-year growth.
Looking ahead, DoorDash, Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH) plans to expand product selection and improve service quality in 2026. The company expects FQ1 2026 Marketplace GOV in the range of $31.0 billion – $31.8 billion, along with adjusted EBITDA in the range of $675 million – $775 million.
DoorDash Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH), together with its subsidiaries, operates a commerce platform that connects merchants, consumers, and independent contractors in the US and internationally.
10. Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD)
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 19, Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) released its January 2026 operating data. The company reported that funded customers for the month reached 27.2 million, representing an increase of 190,000 from December 2025 and 1.75 million year-over-year.
In addition, the total platform assets grew 59% year-over-year to $324 billion, representing that customer portfolios were much larger in January 2026 as compared to a year ago. The net deposits for the month totaled $4.5 billion, reflecting a 17% annualized growth rate on December AUC and 33% growth over the last 12 months versus January 2025 assets.
Following the release on February 20, Goldman Sachs analyst James Yaro lowered the firm’s price target on Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) to $111 from $130, while maintaining a Buy rating. The analyst noted that the company released strong January 2026 metrics, indicating 9% annualized growth in funded customers. The lower price target is based on the firm marking its valuation model higher following robust January data.
Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ:HOOD) is a financial technology platform that enables retail investors to make commission-free investments across diverse financial securities. These include ADRs, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, gold, options, and shares. It offers various services such as fractional trading, securities lending, margin trading, around-the-clock trading, joint investments, future contracts, and others.
9. Sea Limited (NYSE:SE)
Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 19, Reuters reported that Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) entered a strategic partnership with Google to build AI tools for e-commerce and gaming in Southeast Asia.
The report highlighted that both companies will focus on building an AI agentic shopping prototype on Sea Limited’s Shopee platform. The AI would not only answer questions, but also be capable of shopping, browsing products, or managing orders autonomously. Moreover, the partnership also incorporates Google’s AI, which will boost game development on Sea Limited’s Garena.
This move is part of Google’s strategy to monetize AI by expanding collaborations beyond chatbots. Shopee dominates Southeast Asia’s e-commerce, and these AI updates are expected to provide it with an added edge over its competitors.
Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) is a global consumer internet company headquartered in Singapore. The company operates three core businesses across digital entertainment, e-commerce, and digital financial services.
8. Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW)
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 18, Citi analyst Tyler Radke noted that the recent 30% pullback in Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) is an overreaction to the company’s fiscal Q3 2025 results. The analyst maintained a Buy rating on the stock but lowered the price target from $300 to $270.
The analyst noted that the recent pullback was due to a modest earnings beat, which the market combined with the sectoral challenges related to AI and valuation. Radke highlighted Snowflake’s AI-resilient consumption model. He added that recent channel checks show strong demand for Cortex AI. The demand for Cortex AI has been boosted by $200 million deals with Anthropic and OpenAI, in addition to the strong ties with Google’s Gemini.
He noted:
“The substantial $200M deal with both Anthropic and OpenAI, along with collaboration with Google Gemini, underscores customer demand for the Cortex, which is now moving towards more meaningful monetization, following the new AI disclosure of $100M.”
Moreover, Radke added that Snowflake Intelligence is delivering 20-30% higher consumption for some financial and retail clients, and has now reached over 2,000 customers, up from 1,200 in Q3 2025. The analyst sees the company’s migrations boosting based on Citi’s latest CIO survey, which suggests an increase in financial services IT budgets.
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) provides cloud data warehousing software and offers Data Cloud, an ecosystem that allows customers, data providers, partners, and data consumers to break down data silos and derive value from data. The company’s platform supports a range of use cases, including data lakes, data warehousing, data engineering, data application development, data science, and data sharing.
7. RELX PLC (NYSE:RELX)
RELX PLC (NYSE:RELX) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 19, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of RELX PLC (NYSE:RELX) launched a new identity management platform for the healthcare sector.
Management noted that the tool combines top tools for verifying, matching, and enriching patient identities with AI-powered authentication. This allows enhanced identity handling and security throughout the patient’s healthcare journey.
Some of the core features of the new platform include enhanced identity verification, resolution, and fraud protection, as the platform integrates LexisNexis IDVerse. For healthcare professionals, the platform speeds up the process of onboarding, automates processing, and provides smooth digital checks to block fraud.
Kim Brown, vice president of product management for insurance and healthcare identity solutions, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, noted:
”By integrating automated identity verification directly into healthcare environments, organizations can detect deepfakes, reduce fraud risk, improve efficiency, and say ‘yes’ with confidence to deliver a secure, intuitive experience for consumers.”
RELX PLC (NYSE:RELX) is a global information and analytics company that serves professional and business customers with decision tools and data-driven solutions across scientific, technical, medical, legal, and risk management markets.
6. Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK)
Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 19, Reuters reported that World Labs, founded by Fei-Fei Li, raised $1 billion in a funding round that included investors such as AMD, Nvidia, Emerson Collective, Fidelity, Sea, and Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK).
Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) came in as the largest investor with a $200 million investment and will serve as an adviser for World Labs. The advisory role is linked to integrating the company’s 3D design expertise with the startup’s AI models. The role also targets applications in entertainment, robotics, and 3D workflows, aligning with Autodesk’s tools for creators.
Although the startup did not disclose its valuation, a January 2026 report by Bloomberg suggests a valuation of around $5 billion.
Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) is a California-based company that provides 3D design, engineering, and entertainment technology solutions. Incorporated in 1982, the company serves a wide range of markets, including engineering, construction, education, and entertainment.
5. Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM)
Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 18, Reuters reported that Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM), which is known for its tools such as Jira and Confluence, appointed James Chuong as its new CFO.
James Chuong will replace Joe Binz on March 30. Earlier in October, the company pointed towards Joe Binz’s retirement to focus on his personal matters. Management highlighted that James Chuong brings 10 years of experience serving as LinkedIn’s finance chief. Previously, Chuong has also worked as an investment banker at J.P. Morgan, Citigroup, and Bank of America Securities.
Management noted that Choung will be leading the company’s finance and legal teams, which is critical for Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM), considering its $4 billion+ annual revenue.
Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAM) delivers collaboration, project management, and IT service tools that help enterprises in integrating their teams through a subscription-based model. Some of its offerings include Jira, Confluence, Trello, and Loom. The company covers a broad set of solutions such as project management, document sharing, video communication tools, service management, and Chat & Agent capabilities.
4. CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP)
CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 17, CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) launched a new AI tool called Homes AI. The tool is powered by Microsoft Azure and OpenAI. It allows users to communicate through voice and text, similar to chatting with a real estate agent.
Management noted that Homes AI includes conversational search, which is a two-way talking agent that offers personalized recommendations. The tool is linked to CoStar’s Homes.com and has the ability to pull data in real-time without needing to redirect. Moreover, the tool also prioritizes privacy as all data stays in the company’s ecosystem and is not used to train any external AI.
Management added that the integration of this new tool provides CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) with a strategic edge over its competitors in the housing market. Moreover, the company anticipates the tool will lead to an increase in traffic, engagement, and leads. Management plans to roll out Homes AI across CoStar’s portfolio to boost monetization.
CoStar Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services in the US, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America.
3. Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL)
Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 20, Pitchbook reported that Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL) accelerated its capital return to investors to regain investor confidence after a failed merger attempt.
Earlier in November 2025, the company had announced its plans to merge one of its early funds, OBDC II, with its main public fund. However, the merger was halted as it might have hurt OBDC II investors, as the stock was trading below its true asset value. Therefore, Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL) sold loans from OBDC II, including $600 million of assets and bits from two other funds to big institutional buyers, at full book value, generating $1.4 billion in cash.
Co-president of the company, Craig Packer, stressed they are not halting redemptions and have offered 5% quarterly buybacks for years. He added that the company is accelerating by distributing cash directly to all OBDC II investors at a similar 5% quarterly pace and plans to potentially return half the fund’s capital by year-end.
New York-based company, Blue Owl Technology Finance Corp. (NYSE:OTF), is a business development company focused on providing direct lending and equity investments to upper middle-market technology and software firms. The company was founded in 2018.
2. IREN Limited (NASDAQ:IREN)
IREN Limited (NASDAQ:IREN) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 17, IREN Limited (NASDAQ:IREN) announced the appointment of John Gross as Chief Innovation Officer, which is a newly established role in the company. The Chief Innovation Officer will oversee engineering standards, thermal architecture, and commissioning for the company’s upcoming data centers as it transitions into high-performance computing.
Management highlighted that Gross brings more than 20 years of experience in data center design, specializing in high-density racks and liquid cooling. He also serves as the Vice Chair of committees within ASHRAE, which sets global standards for these advanced cooling technologies. Gross has already been helping in vetting the company’s existing data center portfolio.
Daniel Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of IREN, commented:
“John has been instrumental in shaping our engineering standards over several years. As AI workloads increase in density and complexity, his leadership will be central to maintaining technical rigor as we scale efficiently across our platform.”
Management further noted that as AI workloads are exploding, the heat output increases, therefore efficient cooling becomes a competitive edge. The new role is expected to help the company scale efficiently amid booming demand from hyperscalers.
Iren Limited (NASDAQ:IREN) operates data centers powered by renewable energy, specializing in high-performance computing for artificial intelligence (AI) cloud services and Bitcoin mining. The company recently shifted focus to AI infrastructure, securing major deals, including a $9.7 billion partnership with Microsoft.
1. Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN)
Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) is one of the Most Promising Stocks to Invest In Before They Take Off. On February 17, Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) announced its partnership with Vercel to add safety checks to Skills.sh. Skills.sh is a platform where developers share reusable skills that make AI agents smarter and more capable.
Under this partnership, Gen Digital’s Agent Trust Hub will scan every skill on Skills.sh before developers or users install it. The scanning will return four ratings for each skill, including Safe, Low Risk, High Risk, and Critical Risk. Management noted that the scanning will be based on advanced threat detection, which will help in spotting unsafe permissions, anomalies, or bad intent.
Management highlighted that as AI Agents are evolving from chatbots to real-world actors, there is a risk of malicious skills, which can be used to steal data or execute scams. The partnership adds an extra layer of security by bringing trust in the ecosystem and helps developers to build at a faster pace.
Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) develops cybersecurity software and services for consumers and small businesses. Its product range covers antivirus protection, identity theft prevention, and VPN solutions.
While we acknowledge the potential of GEN to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than GEN and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
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