Three Standout Stocks to Track: Building Your 2021 Best Stocks Portfolio

The search for exceptional equities that can deliver sustained returns remains one of the most compelling pursuits in modern investing. Throughout 2021 and beyond, identifying best stocks that combine strong fundamentals with genuine momentum has become increasingly critical for portfolio builders. The acceleration of digital transformation—driven by cloud computing expansion, AI adoption, and e-commerce growth—has created fresh opportunities for investors willing to dig deeper into emerging trends.

Rather than chasing every promising name that crosses the market, savvy investors focus on companies demonstrating tangible evidence: explosive quarterly results, fortress balance sheets, and management teams providing confident forward guidance. The stocks that truly stand out tend to be those riding secular waves that will persist for years. While mega-cap leaders like Amazon and Alphabet have already enriched early believers, their established valuations limit some investors’ entry points. Yet these examples underscore an important reality—the best stocks for patient investors are often those capturing transformative industry shifts while still trading beneath peak momentum.

Semrush: The SaaS Platform Reshaping Digital Marketing

In an era where online visibility determines business success, Semrush has positioned itself as the go-to platform for companies serious about digital dominance. This Software-as-a-Service provider equips businesses globally with tools for search optimization, content strategy, social media management, and competitive intelligence—essentially everything modern brands need to thrive online.

The company’s trajectory tells a compelling story. When Semrush reported quarterly earnings, revenue surged 58% year-over-year to $45 million, signaling robust demand for its comprehensive platform. Management’s bullish outlook for the quarter ahead adds further conviction to this narrative.

What makes this particular equity particularly intriguing is its seeming anonymity despite appreciable share price gains. Even after climbing over 40% in recent weeks, SEMR stock has somehow escaped mainstream investor attention. This under-the-radar quality suggests potential runway for continued appreciation, especially as more enterprises recognize the critical importance of digital marketing infrastructure.

The company’s evolution from point-solution provider to comprehensive platform represents exactly the kind of value-creation story that builds wealth over time. By continuously expanding its feature set based on client feedback, Semrush has created genuine switching costs and customer loyalty. For businesses navigating the digital landscape, these tools have become practically indispensable—hardly a weak foundation for a growth equity.

Upstart Holdings: The AI Revolution in Consumer Finance

Few industries stand as ripe for disruption as personal lending. Upstart has attacked this massive market with an elegant solution: artificial intelligence automating underwriting decisions that traditional finance reserves for humans or oversimplified credit scores.

The platform’s sophistication lies in its machine learning architecture, which evaluates creditworthiness through alternative variables—education, employment history, financial behavior patterns—rather than relying solely on traditional FICO metrics. This approach has proven dramatically more accurate at identifying creditworthy borrowers while approving more qualified applicants than legacy systems.

When the company unveiled its second-quarter results, the numbers justified the enthusiasm: revenue rocketed over 1,000% compared to the prior year. Beyond this blockbuster performance, management raised its full-year guidance from $600 million to $700 million, demonstrating confidence in sustained momentum. Remarkably, Upstart is already profitable—exceedingly rare among hypergrowth technology companies.

The company’s recent capital raise of $400 million in convertible debt at just 0.25% interest showcases not only investor enthusiasm but also Upstart’s ability to secure favorable financing terms that fuel further expansion. Adding Spanish-language support to its platform represents another strategic move toward market penetration and inclusivity.

For investors convinced that traditional consumer lending mechanics require wholesale reformation, UPST stock embodies that thesis in tangible form. The combination of explosive growth, actual profitability, and expanding market reach creates a compelling investment profile.

NVIDIA: The Engine Room of the AI Era

NVIDIA stands as perhaps the most essential player in the infrastructure enabling artificial intelligence, data analytics, and gaming innovation. The company’s graphics processing units—GPUs—have evolved from gaming accessories to foundational chips powering enterprise data centers worldwide.

The company’s latest earnings sustained its pattern of exceptional execution. Second-quarter revenue reached $6.51 billion, representing 68% year-over-year expansion. Even more impressively, gaming-related revenue specifically accelerated 85% year-over-year to $3.06 billion. Earnings per share hit $0.94, a staggering 276% increase from the prior year, with 24% sequential improvement.

Beyond raw financial metrics, NVIDIA continues expanding its technological moat. The recent launch of NVIDIA Omniverse—a simulation and collaboration platform enabling digital scene creation and design—opens new frontiers for creative professionals. Engineers and artists can now prototype concepts entirely in the digital realm before manufacturing or deploying physical versions, fundamentally changing creative workflows.

The subsequent announcement of NVIDIA AI Enterprise, a comprehensive software suite supporting VMware environments, extends the company’s reach into enterprise virtualization. By making powerful AI tools accessible to organizations running VMware infrastructure, NVIDIA democratizes artificial intelligence adoption across the enterprise landscape.

These developments raise the essential question: has NVIDIA’s best run already concluded, or does NVDA stock remain positioned for further appreciation? The answer likely hinges on one’s conviction about the durability of AI as a transformative force—a thesis that appears to strengthen with each quarterly report.

Why These Stocks Merit Your Portfolio Consideration

Identifying best stocks requires moving beyond surface-level metrics to understand the structural advantages and market tailwinds behind each company. Semrush capitalizes on mandatory digital transformation. Upstart exploits artificial intelligence application in an industry overdue for disruption. NVIDIA manufactures the chips and software enabling both trends.

Each represents a different angle on the secular forces reshaping modern business. Each has demonstrated that merit translates into measurable financial results. The question facing every investor remains simple: are you watching from the sidelines, or are you positioning your portfolio accordingly?

Note: Market conditions, company fundamentals, and valuations change continuously. Always conduct thorough due diligence and consult with financial professionals before making investment decisions. Past performance does not guarantee future results.