Five Tech Darlings Soaring 23% to 51% in 2025: A Deep Dive Into Why These Growth Plays Deserve Your Attention

The Growth Stock Thesis in 2025

Growth stocks have been delivering seriously impressive returns lately. We’re talking about companies pushing 23% to 51% year-to-date gains — and it’s not some flash in the pan. These aren’t your boring dividend payers. They’re businesses firing on all cylinders, reinvesting profits into expansion, innovation, and capturing market share in high-potential sectors.

Sure, growth stocks can be volatile. They’ll take a hit during market downturns. But for investors with patience and a long-term horizon? They tend to bounce back and hit fresh all-time highs. That’s the whole appeal. The real question isn’t whether to buy growth stocks — it’s which ones make the cut.

The E-Commerce Powerhouses: When a Platform Outpaces a Retailer

Shopify leads this growth pack for good reason. The company has compounded nearly 50% annually over the past decade, and this year hasn’t been an exception — it’s up 49% year to date. Here’s what separates Shopify from the pack:

Its business model is beautifully simple and capital-light. Unlike traditional retailers that need warehouses, supply chains, and massive labor forces, Shopify just provides the software platform. It doesn’t manufacture, store, or ship anything. That means tariffs and supply chain disruptions? They barely move the needle for this company.

Compare that to Amazon, the e-commerce giant everyone knows. Amazon’s empire runs on enormous infrastructure: thousands of warehouses, millions of employees, complex logistics networks. It works, sure, but it’s capital-intensive and exposed to operational risks.

The numbers tell the story. In Q3, Shopify posted 32% revenue growth and an 18% free-cash-flow margin — marking the ninth consecutive quarter of double-digit FCF margins. Gross merchandise volume (GMV) — the total dollar amount flowing through Shopify’s ecosystem — hit $87 billion in the recent period, closing in fast on Amazon’s $107 billion. And Shopify is expanding upmarket, now targeting larger enterprises that previously relied solely on custom solutions.

The valuation? Forward P/E of 85 is elevated but reasonable relative to its five-year average of 98. For a company growing this fast, that’s actually palatable.

The Chip Manufacturing Advantage

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is the only company in this list that actually manufactures chips at scale. Most semiconductor companies? They just design them. TSMC is different — it’s a foundry, and it controls 71% of the advanced foundry market, up from 65% just a year ago.

This is critical. Chips are everywhere: AI accelerators, smartphones, data centers, even refrigerators. TSMC feeds the entire ecosystem. Apple depends on it. Qualcomm depends on it. AMD depends on it. That’s fortress-level market positioning.

The stock has shot up 51% year to date, yet it trades at a reasonable forward P/E of 24, barely above its five-year average of 20. For a company this dominant in such a crucial industry, that’s a genuine bargain.

Latin America’s E-Commerce Dark Horse

MercadoLibre operates in a region that’s massive and still largely underserved online: Latin America. The company describes itself as “Amazon meets PayPal” — it runs both a dominant e-commerce marketplace and a full-scale fintech operation across 18 countries.

The market opportunity is enormous. Latin America has over 600 million people and is experiencing rapid internet penetration and smartphone adoption. MercadoLibre is positioned to capture digital payments, lending, and e-commerce growth for years to come.

Up 23% year to date, the stock trades at a forward P/E of 31 — well below its five-year average of 69. Translation: the market has repriced this growth story lower, creating an entry point. For investors seeking non-U.S. diversification with serious growth potential, this is worth examining.

The Chip Equipment Monopoly

Here’s a less obvious play: ASML Holding. This Dutch company makes the lithography equipment that etches circuitry onto silicon wafers. More specifically, it’s the only supplier of advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) systems — cutting-edge equipment that chipmakers desperately need.

Customers don’t buy this equipment constantly, but when they do, it’s worth hundreds of millions of dollars. And ASML captures recurring revenue from maintenance, upgrades, and related services. As chipmakers ramp production to meet AI and data center demand, they’ll need more equipment — and ASML is the only shop in town.

The stock surged 51% year to date, yet forward P/E sits at 34, right in line with its five-year average. That suggests the market hasn’t gotten ahead of itself despite the explosive move.

The Diversified Tech Play

Not ready to pick individual stocks? The iShares U.S. Technology ETF tracks the Russell 1000 Technology index, giving you exposure to a basket of the best-in-class tech companies without having to do the research yourself.

This Russell 1000 growth-focused fund holds names like Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, and Broadcom. It’s up 29% year to date and offers a smoother ride than picking single stocks — you get diversification across hardware, software, semiconductors, and cloud infrastructure.

Valuation Reality Check

What’s interesting is that despite massive year-to-date gains, most of these stocks haven’t become wildly overvalued. Sure, some multiples have expanded, but they’re not at extremes relative to historical averages. That matters because it means there’s still room for these businesses to compound returns over the next 3-5 years without requiring a multiple expansion — just genuine earnings growth.

The Bottom Line

Growth stocks aren’t for everyone. They require patience through volatility and a genuine belief that these companies will dominate their markets for decades. But if you can handle the swings and you’re thinking in terms of 5-10 year holding periods, the five plays here — Shopify’s capital-light model, TSMC’s foundry monopoly, MercadoLibre’s Latin American expansion, ASML’s equipment dominance, and the diversified Russell 1000 growth exposure through the technology ETF — all have genuine catalysts for continued outperformance.

The market is always repricing based on new information. These stocks are up, sure, but they’re not priced for perfection. That’s what makes them worth serious consideration for long-term portfolios right now.