These 3 Stocks Tripled in 2024: Which One is the Best Buy for 2025?

Sweetgreen (SG 3.27%) is a salad restaurant chain that launched its stock in 2021. At the beginning of 2024, the stock's value had plummeted by almost 80% since its IPO, indicating a lack of confidence from investors. However, the situation changed dramatically throughout 2024, and by November, Sweetgreen's stock had more than tripled.

Even though Sweetgreen ended the year with some gains lost, its overall performance was notable. Additionally, two other companies, Reddit (RDDT 7.13%) and IonQ (IONQ 10.84%), also witnessed significant increases, with their stock values more than tripling over the same period.

This article will explore the reasons behind the success of these three stocks in 2024 and will analyze which one could be the best investment for 2025.

Sweetgreen: Up 184%

When Sweetgreen went public, it was seen as a high-growth venture, but its financial losses raised concerns among investors. By late 2023, management began addressing these issues by promoting the Infinite Kitchen concept, and this vision appears to have captured investor interest in 2024.

The Infinite Kitchen emphasizes automation and technology in its restaurant operations, where robotic machines can prepare most salad bowls. This innovation could be significant.

Throughout the first three quarters of 2024, Sweetgreen allocated 28% of its revenue to labor and related expenses, which is its primary operating cost. If robotic automation can reduce this expense, it could greatly enhance profitability.

The rollout of the Infinite Kitchen is just beginning, with the company starting the quarter with only two out of 225 locations equipped with these new features. However, by the end of the third quarter, 10 locations had upgraded to the Infinite Kitchen. As the automation expands in 2025 and beyond, investors are hopeful that profits will begin to rise, contributing to the stock's significant gains in 2024.

While revenue growth is slowing as the company focuses on profitability and opens fewer new restaurants, its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) have already started to rise, with even more growth expected as the Infinite Kitchen matures.

Reddit: Up 224%

The 224% increase in Reddit's stock price is noteworthy, especially since the company only debuted in March of 2024. Its robust financial performance has played a crucial role in this success.

Over the last two years, Reddit has experienced accelerating revenue growth, which is considered a rare and attractive investment opportunity. For example, in the third quarter, Reddit's revenue surged by 68% year over year, totaling $348 million. This impressive performance results from increasing advertising demand and a growing user base.

Furthermore, Reddit's gross margin has improved significantly, surpassing 90% in the third quarter. This rise in revenue and gross margin has led to substantial growth in the company's free cash flow.

A major factor in Reddit's rapid growth has been its expansion into international markets, enabled by innovative use of artificial intelligence (AI) to translate content, thus attracting new users. Currently, Reddit has only 49 million users in these markets, suggesting there is still ample room for growth.

IonQ: Up 237%

IonQ's stock soared more than 400% in the last quarter of 2024 alone, contributing to an overall tripling of its value. As part of the booming quantum computing industry, IonQ's strong performance cannot be ignored.

Investing in quantum computing can be complex due to the specialized knowledge required to understand the technology. IonQ employs a trapped ion technique, which is one of several methods in quantum computing.

Given the complexity of the field, third-party validation becomes crucial. IonQ’s hardware is accessible through major cloud platforms and is endorsed among credible organizations, including the U.S. government. Notably, the Air Force Research Lab signed a $55 million contract with IonQ to explore practical applications of quantum computing.

The interest in quantum computing has fueled IonQ's emergence as a leading player in a highly promising sector.

My Top Pick for 2025

Many analysts project that the quantum computing market could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars in the future, and if IonQ remains at the forefront, it could enjoy significant growth potential.

On the other hand, Reddit continues to grow rapidly and has significant room to expand its user base internationally, currently only operating with about 100 million active users—indicating the potential to multiply that number many times over.

While both IonQ and Reddit show promising growth trajectories for 2025, I believe that Sweetgreen offers a more straightforward path for potential gains, especially when considering its valuation.

With Sweetgreen trading at five times its sales, it may not be the cheapest restaurant stock, especially given its slowing growth. However, by prioritizing profitability, the company is well-positioned to improve its unit economics through its Infinite Kitchen model. If this model proves successful, Sweetgreen could resume a focus on new restaurant openings, significantly enhancing its outlook.

The company has previously indicated the potential to expand to 1,000 locations in the future, compared to less than 250 today. The key lies in reducing operating expenses, which it seems to be nearing. Therefore, among the three stocks discussed, Sweetgreen stands out as my top pick for 2025.

stocks, investment, growth