The Best Stocks to Invest $50,000 in Right Now

The stock market looks bulletproof right now. Despite the barrage of headlines around the threats of tariffs from the Trump administration, the S&P 500 index is up 22% in the past year and 80% in the last five.

The average price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) for the market is 30, which is close to an all-time high. Regardless of how well stocks such as Nvidia or Microsoft have done in the past, this high average P/E means the typical stock in the United States trades at a premium valuation. Temper your expectations for future returns.

These high valuations do not mean every stock is overvalued, though. There are pockets of value in the market for contrarians looking for solid long-term investments to buy and hold. Here are the two best stocks to invest $50,000 in right now.

An energy drink comeback

Stock No. 1 has had an ugly 12 months. Celsius Holdings (CELH 2.05%) has fallen 75% from its highs set in the spring of 2024. The maker of the Celsius energy drink brand has seen stalling growth with upstart competitors and a complicated situation with its PepsiCo distribution partnership.

With a sugar-free drink marketed towards a healthier lifestyle, Celsius was able to break into the energy drink category and has rapidly gained market share in recent years. Going from a rounding error to 10% market share in the United States, revenue exploded higher in recent years and surpassed $1 billion not too long ago. However, in the last few quarters, sales have declined and were down 31% year over year last quarter.

The first reason was that in 2023, Pepsi ordered too much Celsius inventory for its distribution network, which temporarily inflated the energy-drink company’s sales figures. Essentially, it was getting ahead of actual customer demand. This normalized in 2024, which turned a revenue growth tailwind into a temporary headwind.

Secondly, Celsius’ market share gains have stalled out in the United States, with other brands like Alani Nu taking share.

I think these are temporary concerns and provide investors with a buying opportunity for the leading sugar-free energy drink brand. The sugar-free sector keeps gaining share versus traditional energy drinks, while the entire category grows.

This is a sector tailwind that should help Celsius. The brand is slowly expanding internationally but wants to put its foot on the gas in 2025, with entries into Europe, Australia, and Canada.

Both these factors will help Celsius grow its sales over the next five years. The stock doesn’t look wildly cheap with a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 33, but I think this is masking the company’s earnings potential. Profit margins should start expanding once the company scales up, and the trailing revenue figures are including the Pepsi inventory wash out. For those with a long-term mindset, now is a perfect time to add the stock to your portfolio.

CELH PE ratio, data by YCharts.

The leading e-commerce seller in South Korea

Stock No. 2 is not in a drawdown as deep as Celsius but still trades at a cheap price. Coupang (CPNG -0.88%) is the leading South Korean e-commerce platform. It’s been called the Amazon of South Korea because it uses a lot of the same business tactics, such as a subscription service, free delivery, and sponsored listings.

With a delivery service that’s superior to the competition, the company has gained market share from customers in South Korea. Revenue grew 27% year over year to $7.9 billion last quarter with gross profit growing even faster at 45% year over year growth.

Now, the company is expanding quickly into Taiwan, which is leading to triple-digit revenue growth in the nation. It hopes to repeat its success with a vertically integrated delivery model on the island.

In the coming years, I expect Coupang to keep growing its earnings due to its competitive advantages in delivery times and customer service. Today, the stock has a market cap of $42 billion.

Over the last 12 months, revenue was $29 billion and should surpass $30 billion for all of 2024. In the next three years, I think the company can hit $50 billion in revenue, which is not a huge figure compared to the $500 billion-plus South Korean retail market.

Coupang is not very profitable today, but management believes it can hit 10% profit margins once the business matures. A 10% profit margin on $50 billion in revenue equates to $5 billion in annual earnings. Compared to a market cap of $42 billion today, Coupang stock looks dirt cheap and a good buy for investors focused on the long term.