3 Tech Stocks With More Potential Than Any Cryptocurrency
Snap continues to grow in the shadow of its bigger social media competitors.
Lemonade will keep expanding its AI-powered niche of the insurance market.
Aehr could profit from the growth of the EV and AI markets.
10 stocks we like better than Snap ›
Cryptocurrencies might seem like good investments for speculative investors since many of the top tokens delivered market-crushing gains over the past decade. Yet past performance never guarantees future gains -- and a lot of cryptocurrencies still trade on the headlines instead of their scarcity or the utility of their underlying blockchains.
Instead of loading up your portfolio with risky cryptocurrencies, it might be smarter to invest in some high-growth tech stocks, instead. Here's a look at three of those stocks -- Snap (NYSE: SNAP), Lemonade (NYSE: LMND), and Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ: AEHR) -- to see why they might be better buys than any cryptocurrency.
Snap
Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, suffered a slowdown in 2023. This was due to Apple 's privacy changes on iOS, intense competition from ByteDance's TikTok and Meta 's Instagram, and tough macro headwinds, which all throttled the company's ad sales. It also struggled to gain new daily active users (DAUs) in its core North American market.
But in 2024, Snap's revenue rose 16%. That acceleration was driven by:
Robust overseas growth
Fresh first-party ad tools that addressed Apple's iOS changes
Snapchat+ subscriptions
Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered AR lenses
Spotlight's video recommendations
In the first quarter of 2025, the company's DAUs grew 9% year over year to a record high of 460 million.
Snap didn't provide any additional guidance because it expects the tariffs and macro headwinds to impact its ad sales to Chinese e-commerce companies. But for the full year, analysts still expect revenue to rise 9% to $5.84 billion as the company's adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) grows 6%. From 2024 to 2027, they expect revenue and adjusted EBITDA to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10% and 32%, respectively.
These are solid growth rates for a stock that trades at just 3x this year's sales and 29x adjusted EBITDA. If Snap continues to expand, it might impress the bulls again and beat the top cryptocurrencies.
Lemonade
Lemonade carved out a high-growth niche in the insurance market with its AI-driven platform, which streamlines the onboarding and claims process with chatbots and algorithms. That digital-native approach made it a popular option for younger and first-time insurance buyers.
Lemonade initially only offered homeowners' and renters' insurance but expanded with more term life, pet health, and auto plans after its public debut five years ago. It also ceded a portion of the risks from those plans to big reinsurers to insulate itself from bigger losses.
The company's growth in customers and in-force premiums slowed down in 2023 as it struggled with delayed rate approvals for its home and auto policies in several states. Those delays forced it to approve fewer policies and curb its near-term expansion.
But in 2024, Lemonade's growth accelerated again as it secured those new rate approvals. In addition, its AI-driven pricing model was approved in more states and it ramped up spending again to gain new customers. In the first quarter of 2025, the number of customers grew 21% year over year to a record high of 2.55 million.
From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect Lemonade's revenue to rise at a CAGR of 41% as its adjusted EBITDA turns positive by the final year. That's an impressive growth rate for a stock that trades at just 4x this year's sales. If the company keeps locking in new customers, it could deliver bigger gains than a lot of cryptocurrencies.
Aehr Test Systems
Aehr produces testing and burn-in equipment for chipmakers. It went public back in 1997 but didn't gain much attention until 2021. That's when investors recognized it as a play on silicon carbide (SiC) chips, which can resist higher voltages, operate at higher temperatures, and run on higher frequencies than traditional silicon chips.
That resilience makes SiC chips well-suited for lasers, 5G base stations, radars, and electric vehicles (EVs). Aehr is one of the few companies that produce testing and burn-in equipment for SiC chips.
Aehr's revenue declined in fiscal 2025 (which ended this May) as it grappled with a soft EV market, tariff-related delays, and a higher mix of cheaper products. But from fiscal 2025 to fiscal 2027, analysts expect its revenue to grow at a CAGR of 22%. They also expect its adjusted EBITDA to turn positive in fiscal 2025 and grow 58% in fiscal 2026.
Aehr's near-term catalysts include the AI market's growing demand for its testing and burn-in tools, the EV market's gradual recovery, the expansion of its portfolio with new gallium nitride (GaN) chips and silicon photonics products, and its international expansion. Its stock still looks reasonably valued at 7x this year's sales and could gain a lot more momentum as the EV market warms up and the AI market continues to expand.
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Globe and Mail
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NANO Nuclear Completes Assembly of Its Proprietary Annular Linear Induction Pump Technology Prototype for Critical Test Loop Validation In SBIR Phase III Program
Milestone demonstrates NANO Nuclear's ability to bring advanced nuclear technology from initial design to construction and demonstration New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - July 23, 2025) - NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) ("NANO Nuclear" or "the Company"), a leading advanced nuclear energy and technology company focused on developing clean energy solutions, today announced that its proprietary, patent pending Annular Linear Induction Pump (ALIP) technology for nuclear reactors has been assembled onto a test loop and integrated to a controllable test setup for variable design validation at NANO Nuclear's Demonstration Facility in Westchester County, New York. As NANO Nuclear continues progress with its microreactor programs, including its lead KRONOS MMR TM Energy System project, the ALIP assembly milestone demonstrates NANO Nuclear's leadership in advanced nuclear energy technology and its ability to move technology from initial design to construction and demonstration. NANO Nuclear hopes to be able to start commercial sales activities for ALIP by the end of this year or next year. This milestone also underscores the utility of NANO Nuclear's Westchester Demonstration Facility, which became operational earlier this year. "This initial milestone with ALIP shows in a small but very promising way what we can do as a company in the real world," said James Walker, Chief Executive Officer of NANO Nuclear. "ALIP is an enabling technology that supports the development of next-generation reactors utilizing molten salts or liquid metals, and advancing ALIP through the SBIR Phase III process has allowed us to mature the system extensively, refining its design, validating key performance metrics, and preparing it for integration into demonstration-scale platforms at our custom-built Westchester facility. This progress not only enhances the technology's readiness for deployment but also opens a clear pathway toward revenue generating activities for NANO Nuclear as we progress work on our broader portfolio of advanced nuclear technologies." The ALIP technology is a thermal management and distribution system within NANO Nuclear's suite of advanced nuclear energy technologies. It operates using electromagnetic, in place of mechanical, pumps, and could serve as a critical component in the development of advanced molten-salt and liquid-metal nuclear reactors. As previously announced, earlier this year, NANO Nuclear collaborated with aRobotics Company, a leading innovator in robotics fabrication, inspection, engineering and testing, to support NANO Nuclear's ongoing SBIR Phase III program for ALIP, which was previously funded by the U.S Department of Energy. Data from the test and validation work being done will be leveraged to support the SBIR Phase III program. Figure 1 - NANO Nuclear Energy 's ALIP Technology (center) integrated on the Test Loop inside Custom-Engineered Thermal Chamber at the Demonstration Facility in Westchester County, New York. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: "Developing the first iteration of NANO Nuclear's ALIP and its adjacent test instrumentation enables us to collect crucial data and advance this project towards its ultimate goal of commercialization," said Jay Yu, Founder and Chairman of NANO Nuclear. "With the support of aRobotics Company, we plan to steadily develop and test additional generations of ALIP as we improve the technology's readiness for the market." To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: "We believe ALIP will have a number of applications upon development including in the space and defense sectors," said Akaash Kancharla, CEO of aRobotics Company. "The procedural knowledge and material science advanced by this work will have implications far beyond this useful product." By utilizing a time-varying magnetic field, ALIPs enable the movement of conductive fluids without mechanical components, reducing wear and maintenance requirements while increasing efficiency. Current efforts at the NANO Nuclear Demonstration Facility are geared towards the development of the first operational ALIP prototype and a custom designed test loop for research data collection, alongside a magnetic field mapping system, for the collection of manufacturing and performance data. Future work will include testing and characterizing pump performance with different working fluids, simulating component failure scenarios, and material testing. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: About NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) is an advanced technology-driven nuclear energy company seeking to become a commercially focused, diversified, and vertically integrated company across five business lines: (i) cutting edge portable and other microreactor technologies, (ii) nuclear fuel fabrication, (iii) nuclear fuel transportation, (iv) nuclear applications for space and (v) nuclear industry consulting services. NANO Nuclear believes it is the first portable nuclear microreactor company to be listed publicly in the U.S. Led by a world-class nuclear engineering team, NANO Nuclear's reactor products in development include patented KRONOS MMR ™ Energy System, a stationary high-temperature gas-cooled reactor that is in construction permit pre-application engagement U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in collaboration with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.), " ZEUS", a solid core battery reactor, and " ODIN", a low-pressure coolant reactor, and the space focused, portable LOKI MMR ™, each representing advanced developments in clean energy solutions that are portable, on-demand capable, advanced nuclear microreactors. Advanced Fuel Transportation Inc. (AFT), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is led by former executives from the largest transportation company in the world aiming to build a North American transportation company that will provide commercial quantities of HALEU fuel to small modular reactors, microreactor companies, national laboratories, military, and DOE programs. Through NANO Nuclear, AFT is the exclusive licensee of a patented high-capacity HALEU fuel transportation basket developed by three major U.S. national nuclear laboratories and funded by the Department of Energy. Assuming development and commercialization, AFT is expected to form part of the only vertically integrated nuclear fuel business of its kind in North America. HALEU Energy Fuel Inc. (HEF), a NANO Nuclear subsidiary, is focusing on the future development of a domestic source for a High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) fuel fabrication pipeline for NANO Nuclear's own microreactors as well as the broader advanced nuclear reactor industry. 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For more corporate information, please visit: For further NANO Nuclear information, please contact: Email: IR@ Business Tel: (212) 634-9206 PLEASE FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES HERE: NANO Nuclear Energy LINKEDIN NANO Nuclear Energy YOUTUBE NANO Nuclear Energy X PLATFORM Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release and statements of NANO Nuclear's management and collaborators in connection with this news release contain or may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In this context, forward-looking statements mean statements related to future events, which may impact our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes", "potential", "will", "should", "could", "would," "seek," "hope, "may" and other words of similar meaning. In this press release, forward-looking statements include those related to NANO Nuclear's development and commercialization plans for the ALIP technology. These and other forward-looking statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this news release and represent management's current views and assumptions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, events or results and involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may be beyond our control. For NANO Nuclear, particular risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the following: (i) risks related to our U.S. Department of Energy ("DOE") or related state or non-U.S. nuclear licensing submissions, (ii) risks related the development of new or advanced technology and the acquisition of complimentary technology or businesses, including difficulties with design and testing, cost overruns, regulatory delays, integration issues and the development of competitive technology, (iii) our ability to obtain contracts and funding to be able to continue operations, (iv) risks related to uncertainty regarding our ability to technologically develop and commercially deploy a competitive advanced nuclear reactor or other technology in the timelines we anticipate, if ever, (v) risks related to the impact of U.S. and non-U.S. government regulation, policies and licensing requirements, including by the DOE and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, including those associated with the recently enacted ADVANCE Act and the May 23, 2025 Executive Orders seeking to streamline nuclear regulation, and (vi) similar risks and uncertainties associated with the operating an early stage business a highly regulated and rapidly evolving industry. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this news release. These factors may not constitute all factors that could cause actual results to differ from those discussed in any forward-looking statement, and NANO Nuclear therefore encourages investors to review other factors that may affect future results in its filings with the SEC, which are available for review at and at Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a predictor of actual results. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this news release, except as required by law.
Globe and Mail
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The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Visa and Affirm Holdings
For Immediate Release Chicago, IL – July 23, 2025 – announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Visa Inc. V and Affirm Holdings, Inc. AFRM. Here are highlights from Tuesday's Analyst Blog: Visa vs. Affirm: Old School & FinTech - Who Wins the Payment War? Visa Inc. and Affirm Holdings, Inc. both are now operating at the forefront of the payments landscape, one as a decades-old card network with global scale, the other as a fast-growing fintech innovator in buy now, pay later (BNPL). Visa processes trillions in consumer and commercial payments each year, earning reliable fee-based revenues. Affirm, by contrast, has carved out a niche financing model that embeds point-of-sale loans directly into e-commerce checkouts. With growing competition from Big Tech and evolving consumer preferences, investors must decide whether Visa's entrenched network or Affirm's disruptive momentum offers better upside. Let's dive deep and closely compare their fundamentals to determine which stock is the stronger investment opportunity today. The Case for Visa Visa remains a dominant force in global payments, operating one of the most extensive and secure card payment networks in the reported second quarter fiscal 2025 net revenue of $9.6 billion, up 9.3% year-over-year on an 8% gain in payments volume and strong cross-border growth. Its durable competitive moat lies in its sprawling global network, which captures more than half of purchase volume in the United States and billions of digital transactions. Visa Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Visa Inc. Quote Its entrenched global reach, strong brand trust and deep integration with financial institutions continue to make it a backbone of the traditional payments bolstered shareholder returns with $5.6 billion in buybacks in the last reported quarter and a fresh $30 billion repurchase authorization, underscoring cash-flow strength. Beyond core card transactions, Visa is pushing into digital payments through Visa Direct, tapping into peer-to-peer and business payouts. It is also investing in real-time payments infrastructure and API-based solutions to remain relevant in a rapidly digitizing financial landscape. However, Visa's growth is naturally tied to the pace of consumer spending and cross-border transactions, both of which are increasingly vulnerable to economic cycles and inflation pressures. Additionally, Visa's business model is primarily fee-based and intermediated, dependent on banks, merchants and processors. This layered structure contrasts with the emerging direct-to-consumer models that fintech disruptors are leveraging to sidestep traditional rails. As the payments landscape shifts toward embedded finance and alternative credit models, Visa's legacy advantage may be less compelling for tech-savvy Gen Z and millennial consumers seeking speed, flexibility and something fresh. The Case for Affirm Affirm represents the modern alternative to traditional credit cards, with its BNPL model reshaping how consumers finance purchases. In fiscal third-quarter 2025, Affirm's revenues improved 36% year over year to $783.1 million, driven by higher gross merchandise volume (GMV) and expanded merchant relationships. Its active consumer count rose to 21.9 million, and transactions per active user grew by 21.7%, showing rising engagement and repeat usage. Affirm Holdings, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Affirm Holdings, Inc. Quote What makes Affirm structurally compelling is its ability to operate outside the traditional credit-card networks. Its partnerships with Shopify, Amazon, Costco and Apple allow it to plug directly into consumer spending. Affirm's AI-powered underwriting tools and real-time risk assessment give it the agility to approve users more accurately and scale profitably. Unlike Visa, which largely benefits from payment routing, Affirm profits from originating and managing consumer credit directly. The company's diversified funding model, including 24 securitizations totaling $12.25 billion and relationships with 150+ capital partners, underscores its growing operational maturity. And while Affirm is not yet consistently profitable for a long period, its investments in automation, gen AI, and merchant analytics tools are positioning it for long-term operating leverage. With younger demographics favoring transparent instalment payments, Affirm is well-aligned with consumer trends. Internationally, Affirm is scaling through a strategic partnership with Shopify to enter Western Europe, following its U.K. launch. With more than 358,000 merchant partners, this global push opens up significant new revenue streams. Affirm is also broadening its ecosystem beyond core BNPL, investing in debit card offerings and B2B tools to further diversify business. AFRM's long-term debt-to-capital of 71.8% is significantly higher than Visa's 30.7%, but that is not entirely unexpected for the fintech, still scaling operations. Affirm's high leverage reflects its aggressive growth strategy and non-bank structure, which is normal for its business model, but also means higher interest expense risk and greater exposure to credit market tightening. How Do Zacks Estimates Compare for V & AFRM? The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Affirm's bottom line is comparably favorable at this stage. The consensus estimate for V's fiscal 2025 earnings indicates a 13.1% increase from a year ago, while the same for revenues suggests 10.3% growth. On the other hand, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Affirm's fiscal 2025 EPS indicates 101.8% year-over-year improvement, and the same for revenues signals a 37.1% rise. Valuation: V vs. AFRM On a price-to-sales basis, Visa sits at 15.04X forward revenues, significantly above the industry average of 6.30X. By contrast, Affirm's price-to-sales multiple is at 5.41X, in line with its high growth fintech peers. Affirm's cheaper P/S multiple leaves room for significant growth as business expansion accelerates. Price Performance Comparison Visa has returned 32.5% in the past year, buoyed by resilient spending trends and market optimism. Affirm, meanwhile, has delivered a massive 127.5% return, driven by its outsized revenue growth and positive guidance surprises. Both have outperformed the industry and the S&P 500 Index during this time. Conclusion While Visa with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), continues to dominate global payments with scale, profitability and unmatched trust, its model is comparatively mature and tethered to the pace of economic activity. Affirm, in contrast, is riding structural tailwinds, consumer credit disruption, embedded finance and a flexible payment demanding user base. Affirm's significant revenue growth, expanding merchant base and growing user engagement point to accelerating momentum. Its nimble, vertically integrated platform gives it more control over the customer experience, and its recent international push and AI investments signal it is just getting started. Yes, Affirm carries higher leverage and is still scaling, but its valuation reflects that upside potential. Given its faster growth trajectory, more favorable Zacks estimates and outperformance in the stock market, Affirm currently offers more compelling upside for investors seeking the next phase of fintech and payments evolution. AFRM currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks? Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.7% average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +48.4%, +50.2% and +56.7% per year. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation. See Stocks Free >> Zacks Investment Research 800-767-3771 ext. 9339 support@ Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. 5 Stocks Set to Double Each was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in the coming year. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +112%, +171%, +209% and +232%. Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor. Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Visa Inc. (V): Free Stock Analysis Report Affirm Holdings, Inc. (AFRM): Free Stock Analysis Report
Globe and Mail
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Wolverine Worldwide Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2025 Conference Call for August 6, 2025
Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE: WWW) today announced that it expects to report its second quarter fiscal 2025 financial results on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, at approximately 6:30 a.m. ET. Following the press release, the Company will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET to review results and discuss current business trends. Investors and analysts interested in joining the call are invited to dial 1-800-715-9871 (international callers, please dial 1-646-307-1963) approximately five minutes prior to the start of the call. The conference call will be broadcast live and accessible under 'Webcasts & Presentations' in the Investor Relations section of A recorded replay of the call will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and remain available until August 13, 2025. To access the telephone replay, dial 1-800-770-2030 (international callers, please dial 1-609-800-9909). The access code for the replay is 9927992. ABOUT WOLVERINE WORLDWIDE Founded in 1883, Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) is one of the world's leading designers, marketers, and licensors of branded casual footwear and apparel, performance outdoor and athletic footwear and apparel, kids' footwear, industrial work boots and apparel, and uniform footwear. The Company's portfolio includes Merrell®, Saucony®, Sweaty Betty®, Hush Puppies®, Wolverine®, Chaco®, Bates®, HYTEST®, and Stride Rite®. Wolverine Worldwide is also the global footwear licensee of the popular brands Cat® and Harley-Davidson®. Based in Rockford, Michigan, for more than 140 years, the Company's products are carried by leading retailers in the U.S. and globally in approximately 170 countries and territories. Wolverine Worldwide is a Great Place to Work® Certified™ company. For additional information, please visit our website,
