2 Brilliant Growth Stocks to Buy Now and Hold for the Long Term

By Lawrence Rothman | January 06, 2026, 6:45 PM

Key Points

  • Not all growth stocks have outperformed the market.

  • Chewy's growth has gotten back on track.

  • Deckers Outdoor had solid sales growth despite broad economic challenges.

Investors often categorize stocks into two different styles: Growth and value. Growth stocks have done well for investors compared to value stocks. In 2025, the S&P 500 Growth index returned 22.2%, about 9 percentage points better than the S&P 500 Value index.

Of course, individual stock selection remains paramount. Among growth stocks, there are two that stand out as buying opportunities for long-term investors.

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It's time to look deeper into each company to find out what makes them so compelling.

Someone looking at charts on a tablet.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Chewy

Chewy (NYSE: CHWY) became a Wall Street darling during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. With many people forced to stay home and have limited contact with others, pet adoption soared. That proved a boon to Chewy's revenue. That's because Chewy provides pet products, supplies, and prescriptions online. Fiscal 2021 sales came in at $8.9 billion, nearly double 2019's $4.8 billion.

The company couldn't sustain this level of growth, since revenue got a turbo boost from the pandemic. But management's focus on retaining and growing customers has been paying off.

Chewy had 21.2 million active customers at the end of its fiscal third quarter (Nov. 2). That grew 4.9% compared to the previous year. Net sales per active customer increased by the same percentage to $595. The company defines active customers as those who have ordered a product or service at least once over the past year.

Management's focus on Autoship subscription customers, which helps retention and provides a stable source of sales, continued to expand. These sales grew 13.6% year over year to $2.6 billion. They now account for 83.9% of total sales, up 3.9 percentage points compared to a year ago.

Chewy's total sales increased 8.3% year over year to $3.1 billion. The company also operates profitably, reporting diluted earnings per share under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).

The company has other growth initiatives that should propel faster top- and bottom-line gains. These include healthcare offerings such as medicines, insurance, and clinics.

Chewy's stock, which dropped in price by 1.3% in 2025, also trades at a reasonable valuation, based on next year's earnings expectations, given its long-term growth prospects. The shares have a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 27. That's slightly higher than the S&P 500 index's 24 multiple.

2. Deckers Outdoor

While Deckers Outdoor (NYSE: DECK) produces several footwear brands, its best-known are UGG and HOKA. They also account for the majority of Deckers' sales. Undoubtedly, Deckers' stock investors are happy to put 2025 behind them. The share price fell 49% last year, while the stocks in the S&P 500 averaged a total return of 17.9%.

But long-term investors should view this as an opportunity. Due to macroeconomic pressures, such as a weakening job market, higher tariffs, and persistently elevated inflation, Deckers' sales growth has slowed.

Nonetheless, despite these broader economic challenges, which have affected other consumer good companies, Deckers' fiscal second-quarter sales, stripping out foreign-exchange translation effects, grew 8.3%. Its core UGG and HOKA brands saw 10.1% and 11.1% top-line increases, respectively. The period ended on Sept. 30.

U.S. sales were particularly weak, dropping 1.7% to $839.5 million. However, international sales were strong, gaining 29.3% to $591.3 million.

While no one knows how the U.S. economy will perform in the short run, it will bounce back at some point. That will help sales. In the meantime, international markets remain a big growth opportunity. Notably, management pointed out higher global sales of its HOKA and UGG brands.

Meanwhile, the stock price drop has created a much better valuation. The shares have a forward P/E ratio of 16, down from 35 at the end of January 2025.

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Lawrence Rothman, CFA has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chewy and Deckers Outdoor. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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