As we close the curtain on 2024, a strange phenomenon is creeping into the market. I’ll call it AI fatigue. There’s a sense that, perhaps, artificial intelligence is a bubble that’s run its course.
Some analysts are anxious to move past the novelty of generative AI and large language models and get to the good stuff, which, to them, means how companies will make money from AI.
That story is only now starting to be written. Many people didn’t see the internet's payoff as anything other than an online library until Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), the iPod, and then the smartphone flipped the switch. Investors who had the foresight to invest in technology stocks such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) were richly rewarded.
Nobody can predict the future, but the next wave of AI will include interactive and autonomous AI. While the real payoff may be years away, several companies are making inroads into these areas today. That's why investors may want to consider these three stocks for their portfolios in 2025.
UiPath Is Leading the Way in Workforce Automation
UiPath Inc. (NYSE: PATH) is a software company that specializes in robotic process automation (RPA) technology. This technology gives users the tools to automate regularly occurring processes. The company’s UiPath Platform is advancing the path toward agentic automation, a state in which agents, robots, people, and models integrate seamlessly to enable autonomous processes that will result in smarter decision-making.
The company is not consistently profitable, but revenue has been increasing year-over-year. The growth is slowing, but that was expected after rapid growth in 2023. However, the company faces competition in this space from more established players such as Microsoft. To that end, UiPath continues to spend on marketing as well as R&D.
Nevertheless, the company is well-capitalized and has no debt. Analysts have been raising their price targets for PATH stock, which has a consensus price target of $17.71. This gives investors a 21% upside from its closing price on December 11.
Intuitive Surgical Stock Is Expensive But Continues to Offer Value
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) is a leader in robotic surgery assistance. The company is the brains behind the Da Vinci robotic surgical system, which is now in its fifth generation. Intuitive Surgical is using AI and machine learning (ML) technologies to generate insights that can help surgeons learn from cases ranging from low to more complex, including those with anomalies and complications.
ISRG stock is up 61% in 2024, which is easily outperforming the broader market. However, the stock is a good example of how a stock can be expensive and also offer good value. In this case, Intuitive Surgical has a forward P/E of over 100x. With the company projected to generate approximately $6.57 in earnings per share for the full year, you can see why analysts are raising their price targets to as high as $650 per share.
Expansion Is Driving the Bull Case for iRhythm
Digital healthcare company iRhythm Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: IRTC) designs and manufactures medical devices that provide ambulatory cardiac monitoring services to help patients diagnose arrhythmias. The company says its latest product, Zio, features the most advanced AI in cardiac monitoring based on over one million hours of heart rhythm data.
The company’s current products are used by 6.4 million patients in the United States. However, iRhythm plans to expand its market to include a broader range of symptomatic patients. It’s also planning international expansion, which should increase its total addressable market to over one billion. Revenue is growing, but the company is not profitable and is not expected to be in the next year.
Despite a nearly 20% increase in the last three months, IRTC stock is still down 15% in 2024. That’s not deterring analysts from bidding the stock higher. The consensus price target of $107.82 is almost 20% above the stock’s closing price on December 11. However, several analysts have a much higher price target, including Canaccord Genuity Group, which raised its price target from $125 to $152.
