In this article, we are going to discuss the 10 best cloud computing stocks to buy now. You can also check out the 10 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks to Buy Under $10 here.
Cloud computing has changed the way we access and manage computing resources. The industry is poised for significant growth in the coming years. Market estimates suggest a jump from a size of $0.68 trillion in 2024 to a projected $1.44 trillion by 2029, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.4%. This upward trend is expected to continue, with the market reaching a value of almost $2.5 trillion by 2032. These figures point towards a rising adoption and utilization of cloud solutions across various industries.
The growth in the industry is likely to be driven by a number of factors. One key factor is the growing recognition among large enterprises of the impact that cloud computing can have on their operations. In fact, an impressive 94% of companies across the globe have already adopted cloud computing solutions. This high rate of adoption is expected to have a remarkable economic impact, with forecasts showing that it could generate approximately $3 trillion in revenue by the year 2030.
Currently, North America and Europe are leading the way in cloud computing adoption, with Asia Pacific not far behind. North America holds the largest share of the global market at 41%. The region’s early adoption of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) has played a key role in driving its cloud market growth.
Even with stricter regulations around data privacy and security, the European markets are also displaying consistent growth in cloud adoption. Countries like Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, and Denmark are leading the way in cloud adoption within specific industries. This suggests that European businesses are increasingly recognizing the value of cloud solutions while navigating a regulatory landscape that prioritizes data protection.
The Asia Pacific region is also currently experiencing a rise in cloud computing adoption. The market size rose to an estimated $32.5 billion in 2022 and is projected to be a significant contributor to the global cloud computing market in the coming years. This growth can be attributed to a large-scale shift towards digital business models across various industries in the region. The need for cost-effective solutions has fueled cloud adoption among small and medium businesses (SMBs). Approximately 78% of SMBs are currently using cloud services, with 39% of these businesses spending up to $600,000 per year on public cloud services.
With this context in mind, let’s take a look at the 10 best cloud computing stocks to buy now.
A team of software engineers at desks working on code for a cutting-edge cloud computing solution.
Our Methodology
To shortlist the best cloud computing stocks to buy now, we relied on Insider Monkey’s extensive database of 920 hedge funds as of Q1 2024. We picked the cloud computing stocks with the highest number of hedge fund investors. 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 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
10 Best Cloud Computing Stocks to Buy Now
10. Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 73
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) founded in 2012, has carved a niche in the cloud computing world by offering a data platform that caters to a global audience. By consolidating information into a single source, Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) allows businesses to develop data-driven applications and facilitate data sharing, all within its user-friendly platform.
Snowflake, Inc. (NYSE: SNOW) delivered a strong first quarter for fiscal year 2025, ending April 30, 2024. Total revenue reached $828.7 million, reflecting a healthy 33% year-over-year growth. This growth was driven by a core business that continues to thrive, with product revenue rising 34% year-over-year to $789.6 million.
Analysts are highly bullish on the company’s future, with a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”. This assessment is based on 33 analyst ratings in the past 3 months. The average 12-month price target for Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) sits at $203.59, indicating a potential upside of 51.59% from the current price.
Here’s what ClearBridge Investments said about Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) in its Q2 2023 investor letter:
“While the ClearBridge Multi Cap Growth Strategy has limited mega cap exposure, which has been a recent headwind to relative performance, we own several companies that stand to benefit from the explosive growth in generative AI. These holdings play key roles in building out the necessary infrastructure and helping customers leverage capabilities enabled by this emerging technology.
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW), a cloud-based data platform company, is positioned well to help enterprises better leverage their own data to get the most out of AI models. Though it is still early days in terms of adoption, Snowflake saw workloads for data science, machine learning, and AI use cases grow more than 90% year-over-year in its most recent quarter.”
9. Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 76
Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) founded in 2011, delivers next-generation endpoint protection through a cloud-based solution to customers in different countries. The company’s Falcon platform offers cloud modules via a subscription model (SaaS).
Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) announced impressive financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, exceeding expectations and achieving new milestones. It experienced decent revenue growth, with total revenue rising 42% year-over-year to $692.6 million. This increase in revenue was accompanied by a shift to profitability, with earnings turning positive.
The stock is receiving strong positive sentiment from analysts with a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”. This is based on 31 analyst ratings in the past 3 months. The average 12-month price target for Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) is $399.96, which represents a potential upside of over 2% from the current price levels. The high price target is $435, while the low-price target stands at $350.
Here’s what TimesSquare Capital Management said about Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:
“The high demand for cybersecurity systems is unlikely to abate, which benefited CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD). The company’s expansion beyond endpoint security to offering security on all cloud workloads, along with its growing product suite in areas such as identity and security information & event management, is driving strong demand for its platform among customers amidst a very active cyberthreat environment. That lifted its shares by 25% this quarter, and we trimmed our position.”
Of the 920 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) was held by 76 funds at the end of Q1 2024, making it one of the best cloud computing stocks to buy now.
8. Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83
Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) is a global provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, founded in California in 2005. The company’s software serves companies, educational institutions, and government agencies, offering solutions in financial management, human capital management, and analytics.
Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) announced strong results for its fiscal 2025 first quarter, which ended April 30, 2024. Total revenue reached $1.99 billion, reflecting an impressive 18.1% year-over-year increase. Moreover, Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) reported earnings per share of $1.74, beating the estimates of $1.58. The company has surpassed the EPS estimates in the last 4 quarters.
Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) carries a “Moderate Buy” rating based on 31 analyst recommendations in the past 3 months. The average price target for the stock over the next 12 months sits at $288.42, representing a potential upside of 29.52% from the current price levels. Analysts also provided a high forecast of $352 and a low forecast of $240.
Here’s what ClearBridge Investments said about Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:
“We also sold our remaining position in data monitoring software maker Splunk (splk) ahead of its acquisition by Cisco Systems. Part of the proceeds were redeployed into enterprise resource planning and finance software maker Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY), as we believe its products are well-positioned for consistent, robust subscription growth with potentially further upside as new investment initiatives scale.”
Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) was held by 83 hedge funds at the end of Q1 2024.
7. ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 90
ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE:NOW), a leader in enterprise cloud computing founded in 2004 in California, helps businesses in sectors like healthcare, education, and finance manage digital workflows and streamline operations.
ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE:NOW) delivered a strong first quarter of 2024, exceeding expectations across all key growth and profitability metrics. Subscription revenue surged 25% year-over-year to reach $2.52 billion. Total revenue also experienced healthy growth, reaching $2.60 billion which reflects a 24% year-over-year increase.
Analysts are bullish on ServiceNow Inc.’s (NYSE:NOW) future, with a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”. The average 12-month price target for the stock sits at $865.3, indicating a potential upside of over 11% from the current price levels. Analysts’ forecasts range from a high of $950 to a low of $780.
Here’s what Lakehouse Capital said about ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE:NOW) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:
“US-based software company,ServiceNow, Inc. (NYSE:NOW), provided another strong result, continuing its long and consistent track record of 20%-plus revenue growth combined with healthy profitability. Subscription revenues grew 25% year-on-year to $2.5 billion and free cash flow grew 47% year-on-year to $1.2 billion. The company’s core operating metrics were also impressive with remaining performance obligations growing 26% year-on-year to $17.7 billion (i.e. roughly 2x 2023 revenue) and renewal rates holding steady at 98%. Performance was evenly spread across segments, products, and geographies, with notable strength in the US federal government. The company now boasts 1,933 customers generating in excess of $1 million in Annual Contract Value (ACV), which is pleasing to see as it implies multiple solutions are involved and that the company’s platform model is increasingly resonating with customers. In our view, ServiceNow is one the highest quality software businesses globally as the combination of consistent growth at scale, robust free cash flow generation and a large addressable market make it a compelling opportunity.”
6. Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 96
Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) has become a dominant player in the business IT solutions arena on a global scale. The company ranks highly among the best cloud computing stocks to buy now.
Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of fiscal 2024. Total revenue for Q4 reached $14.3 billion, reflecting a modest 3% year-over-year increase. Cloud services and license support revenue grew by a healthy 9%, reaching $10.2 billion. This indicates strong performance in Oracle’s cloud offerings. Furthermore, the company reported a significant 44% increase in Q4 total remaining performance obligations (RPO) to $98 billion.
Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) has been assigned a “Moderate Buy” rating, based on 27 analyst recommendations in the past 3 months. The average 12-month price target for Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) sits at $149.35, indicating a potential upside of over 6% from the current price.
Here’s what Aristotle Atlantic Partners, LLC, said about Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
“Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) provides products and services that address enterprise information technology (IT) environments. The company’s products and services include enterprise applications and infrastructure offerings that are delivered worldwide through a variety of flexible and interoperable IT deployment models. The company operates in three segments: cloud and license business, hardware, and services.
We believe Oracle’s cloud infrastructure product, OCI 2.0, continues to demonstrate strong revenue growth over several quarters. Additionally, we see the rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) computing needs as being a differentiated growth driver for Oracle. We believe that Oracle will continue to drive positive outcomes for the Cerner business through a better margin structure, as well as topline sales synergies.”
5. Adobe, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 108
Beyond its legacy in creative software, Adobe, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) has become a major player in cloud computing. Through strategic acquisitions in recent years, the company has expanded its platform and attracted a wider user base.
Adobe, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) delivered a powerful first quarter of fiscal year 2024, with an 11% year-over-year revenue increase to reach $5.18 billion. This impressive performance was accompanied by strong profitability, reflected in earnings per share of $4.48, higher than the expected $4.40.
The company’s stock carries a “Moderate Buy” analyst rating. The average 12-month price target for Adobe, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) sits at $611.9, suggesting a potential upside of 12.37% from the current price levels. Analysts’ forecasts range from a high of $703 to a low of $450, indicating some variation in expectations but a generally positive outlook.
Here’s what Mar Vista Investment Partners, LLC said about Adobe, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:
“Despite underperforming during the quarter, Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) remains a powerful player in the creative professional market. We believe the company is well-positioned to capitalize on two key trends: the ongoing shift towards digital commerce and the rise of generative AI.
Adobe stands out as an early leader in generative AI, offering both standalone solutions like Firefly and integrated features within established products like Photoshop. This puts them ahead of the curve, attracting both creative professionals and marketing teams within corporations. As a result, Adobe is experiencing strong bookings growth in the mid-teens, which translates to healthy revenue, earnings, and cash flow. Based on these factors, we project continued intrinsic value growth for Adobe in the low-to-mid-teens range over our investment horizon.”
