We recently compiled a list of the 20 Most Profitable Stocks of the Last 20 Years. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH) stands against the other profitable stocks.
The stock market has a long history of generating wealth for investors. While past performance doesn’t guarantee future results, studying successful companies can provide valuable insights. By understanding the factors that drive these companies’ growth, we can potentially make better investment decisions in the future. It’s important to remember that investing involves risk, and conducting thorough research is crucial before making any investment decisions.
Investors frequently overlook revenue in favor of profitability when evaluating stocks. Profit is what’s left over after all costs are paid. Revenue is the total amount of goods and services sold. Because it is essential to determine if a business is a growth stock or a value one, profitability is important. To learn more about growth stocks, see 12 Best Growth Stocks to Buy and Hold in 2024. You can also discover some undervalued value stocks by reading 11 Oversold Value Stocks To Buy Now.
The U.S. stock market has seen several major events since 2000, including the dot-com boom and fall, the 2008 financial crisis, a tech boom with trillion-dollar values, and the 2020 pandemic crisis. The S&P’s broader market index produced double-digit yearly returns thirteen times between 2003 and 2023. This strong performance can be largely attributed to the phenomenal returns generated by technology stocks, which significantly boosted the overall return of the large-cap market.
According to a recent estimate, the aggregate market value of the top seven S&P 500 corporations is almost double that of the Japanese market. The head of topical research and global economics, Jim Reid, cautions that this is the most concentrated the US market has ever been.
As interest in growth stocks increases due to the hype surrounding AI and the prospect of rate cuts, these companies’ fortunes are expected to soar. To satisfy market demand, businesses are making significant investments in AI. AI’s impact on altering work patterns was highlighted by Satya Nadella du. According to them,:
“A growing body of evidence makes clear the role AI will play in transforming work. Our own research, as well as external studies, show as much as 70% improvement in productivity, using generative AI for specific work tasks.”
Our Methodology
To identify the most profitable stocks, we looked at the 20-year annualized returns of publicly traded companies in the US market from 2004 to 2024 and selected and ranked those with the highest 20-year annualized returns.
A woman and man in formal attire in a meeting room discussing the latest enterprise solutions technology from the company.
Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH)
20-Year Annualized Return: 18.93%
Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH) specializes in developing, selling, deploying, servicing, and maintaining software solutions tailored for supply chain management, inventory management, and omni-channel operations. MANH’s stock price tripled over the last 5 years.
Manhattan Associates reported robust financial performance in Q1 2024, demonstrating strong profitability and revenue growth. The non-GAAP adjusted EPS increased to $1.03 from $0.80 YoY, which marked significant growth. Profit margins expanded to 21%, up from 18% in Q1 2023, reflecting enhanced operational efficiency. The company’s revenue surged to $254.6 million in Q1 2024 which is a 15.2% increase from $221.0 million in Q1 2023. This was driven by substantial growth in cloud subscription revenue to $78.0 million and services revenue to $132.2 million. This growth was fueled by strong demand for supply chain and omnichannel solutions, a successful transition to cloud-based offerings, and effective global execution.
Manhattan Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:MANH) recently introduced Manhattan Active Maven and Manhattan Assist, enhancing AI capabilities for customer service. They also launched Manhattan Active Supply Chain Planning, unifying planning and execution, and are expanding partnerships with Shopify and Google to enhance e-commerce and analytics capabilities.
In Q1 2024, there were around 32 hedge fund holders in the company. The fund with the largest holding was RGM Capital with 560,037 shares worth $140,138,059. MANH stock holds an average “Strong Buy” rating from 7 analysts. Analysts predict Manhattan Associates (MANH) stock to reach an average target of $248.86 over the next 12 months, with estimates ranging from $225 to $260. This average suggests a 1.07% increase from its current price of $246.22.
Overall MANH ranks 19th on our list of the most profitable stocks of the last 20 years. You can visit 20 Most Profitable Stocks of the Last 20 Years to see the other profitable stocks that are on hedge funds’ radar. While we acknowledge the potential of MANH as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than MANH but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.