Stocks to buy

Financial technology (fintech) companies that facilitate online payments and digital banking services had a difficult time in 2022. Dragged lower by the broader market downturn and as investor sentiment soured on technology companies, many fintech stocks have seen their share price cut in half, or worse, over the last year. But despite the carnage, there are reasons to believe that things will turn a corner for fintech stocks.

The fintech market remains robust and continues to grow strongly. According to Allied Market Research, the global fintech market was worth $110.57 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $698.48 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.3% through the end of the decade. With this growth in mind, we offer the following three fintech stocks that could make investors rich in 10 years’ time.

Ticker Company Price
PYPL PayPal $80.18
SQ Block $75.10
V Visa $223.00

PayPal (PYPL)

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A legendary Silicon Valley success story whose founders include Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and Max Levchin, PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) is viewed by many investors and analysts as the original financial technology company. It certainly has dominated online payments since its founding 25 years ago. While PYPL stock has had a rough go of it over the last year, declining 54%, there is every reason to believe that the company and its stock will recover.

In fact, PYPL stock has risen 7% to start 2023, showing signs that it might have bottomed at $67 on December 28 of last year. A bullish report from analysts at Truist sparked renewed optimism, who slapped a “buy” rating on the stock, noting that it remains extremely profitable despite slowing user growth coming out of the pandemic, with a 26% free-cash-flow margin. Truist also points out that PayPal currently has 432 million active accounts, meaning it remains a market leader in the fintech space.

The company also spent nearly $1 billion on share repurchases in each quarter of 2022, and its currently trading at about 15 times trailing free cash flow, one of the cheapest valuations in its history. This presents a clear buy-the-dip opportunity.

Block (SQ)

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Investors who believe that cryptocurrencies, in particular Bitcoin (BTC-USD), will survive the current market downturn should consider taking a position in Block (NYSE:SQ). The fintech company started by Jack Dorsey (who also co-founded Twitter) has suffered after it began to focus more on cryptocurrencies, just as the market for digital coins and tokens began to collapse. Over the past 12 months, SQ stock has declined 45% to now trade at $71 per share. In August 2021, the shares were changing hands at $275 each.

However, while Jack Dorsey is a crypto enthusiast, his fintech company does not focus solely on digital assets. Block continues to run the popular and profitable Square and Cash App that are widely used by small and medium-sized businesses, as well as consumers. The Cash App continues to add users and grow at a brisk 36% year-over-year rate. Fans also point out that Block’s exposure to crypto is limited to Bitcoin only, and that the company does not allow trading or payments in smaller cryptos that are susceptible to fraud.

Through its “Afterpay” service, Block is moving into the buy now, pay later sector that remains popular with consumers, particularly people under age 30, and is also pushing into traditional banking and money management services through “Round-up,” which rounds up transactions to the nearest dollar and invests the money automatically. Long-term, SQ stock could prove the naysayers wrong. Thus, it is among the top fintech stocks to buy that will make you rich in 10 years.

Visa (V)

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Credit card giant Visa (NYSE:V) is likely not the first company investors think of when talking about fintech stocks to buy that will make you rich in 10 years. However, the San Francisco-based company, which was founded in 1958, is expanding aggressively into fintech as it recognizes the changes taking place in the world of online payments and transitions to keep up with the industry. Visa has been gobbling up smaller fintech companies in recent years, bringing their technology and intellectual property in-house. Additionally, the company continues to expand its “Visa Fintech Partner Connect” program, which is designed to help financial institutions connect with vetted technology providers that help facilitate online payments.

Visa is clearly trying to use its size and deep pockets to position itself as a leader and facilitator in the fintech sector. Beyond fintech, Visa also remains a credit behemoth with 3.9 billion of its cards in circulation, processing more than 250 billion transactions annually. The company’s net profit margin currently sits at more than 50%, and while down, its stock continues to outperform the broader market. In 2022, V stock declined only around 5% compared to a 19% drop in the benchmark S&P 500 index. Over the last five years, the share price has gained 82% and currently trades at $223. Did we mention there’s a quarterly dividend payment?

On the date of publication, Joel Baglole held a long position in V. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines

Joel Baglole has been a business journalist for 20 years. He spent five years as a staff reporter at The Wall Street Journal, and has also written for The Washington Post and Toronto Star newspapers, as well as financial websites such as The Motley Fool and Investopedia.