The investing landscape for 2022 is uncertain, as we have seen over recent days. The year has started with selling driven by rising interest rates, which poses a duration risk for large low-turnover funds holding growth stocks that may not pay off for years into the future in terms of discounted cash flows.
However, there’s a flip side to that coin: top long-term growth stocks are on sale, and investors may find some serious bargains in the mix.
One theme that promises to drive those gains is the Metaverse, which is the idea of a persistent shared virtual 3D world operating at the intersection of digital and physical reality.
According to a recent Bloomberg report, the Metaverse theme could be worth over $750 billion in the years ahead. The infrastructure for that growth is alread being laid down by primary players like Meta Platforms Inc. (Nasdaq:FB) and NVIDIA Corp. (Nasdaq:NVDA).
With that in mind, we take a look below at a handful of the most interesting stories tied into the space.
Roblox Corp. (NYSE:RBLX) engages in the provision of online gaming services. Its platform consists of the Roblox Client, the Roblox Studio, and the Roblox Cloud.
The Roblox Client is an application that allows users to explore 3D digital worlds. The Roblox Studio is the toolset that allows developers and creators to build, publish, and operate 3D experiences and other content accessed with the Roblox Client. The Roblox Cloud includes the services and infrastructure that power the human co-experience platforms.
Roblox Corp. (NYSE:RBLX) recently released certain key metrics for November 2021.
According to the company’s release, daily active users were 49.4 million, up 35% year over year, hours engaged were 3.6 billion, up 32% year over year, estimated bookings for November 2021 were between $208 million and $211 million, up 22% – 24% year over year, and estimated average bookings per daily active user was between $4.21 and $4.27, down 8% – 9% year over year.
The stock has suffered a bit of late, with shares of RBLX taking a hit in recent action, down about -15% over the past week.
Roblox Corp. (NYSE:RBLX) managed to rope in revenues totaling $509.3M in overall sales during the company’s most recently reported quarterly financial data — a figure that represents a rate of top line growth of 102.2%, as compared to year-ago data in comparable terms. In addition, the company has a strong balance sheet, with cash levels exceeding current liabilities ($1.9B against $1.9B).
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) frames itself as “a mission critical provider of blockchain cryptocurrency mobile apps and cloud-based business software solutions.”
The stock has been popping over recent weeks as volume picks up to start the new year. It has recently found its way onto the radar for the Metaverse, but has also become interesting as a blockchain play following its announcement that its ZenaPay Blockchain Bitcoin wallet will include credit cards/debit cards to the user wallet.
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) also recently announced that it was invited to present at the Emerging Growth Conference on January 19, 2022. The Company’s Vice President of Communications, Michael Manahan, discussed the company’s developing products in the Metaverse and blockchain.
Mr. Manahan appeared at the NASDAQ studio, on Fox Business News, Newsmax TV, Bloomberg TV, Epazz IR YouTube Channel, and performed the presentation and entertained questions at the Emerging Growth Conference. Epazz, Inc. invited individual and institutional investors, as well as advisors and analysts, to attend its real-time, interactive presentation at the Emerging Growth Conference.
This marks another advance for a company that has been quietly building a potentially powerful position as a software play in the cryptocurrency space. In an industry overpopulated by mining players, EPAZ offers an SaaS platform solution focus that has less competition and potentially more breadth in utility and value proposition.
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) also has ties to the booming real estate market with upside related to soaring commodities pricing through its CryObo segment, which seeks to drive deals through NFTs that can access the future value of properties once the land is developed and buildings are constructed. The company believes its technology can allow real estate developers to raise capital at better terms and allow the token holders to experience the increased value of their tokens and earned income, creating another path to success as the crypto theme potentially transitions back into favor.
Meta Materials Inc. (Nasdaq:MMAT) engages in the manufacture and development of functional materials.
Its technology platform enables the global brands to deliver products to customers in consumer electronics, 5G communications, health and wellness, aerospace, automotive, and clean energy.
Meta Materials Inc. (Nasdaq:MMAT) recently announced that it will be demonstrating NANOWEB® 5G reflector technology live at CES 2022, LVCC North Hall Booth 9253. Winner of the Lux Research Innovator of the Year Award in 2021, META’s 5G reflector should provide a more sustainable and cost-effective solution compared to installing additional powered base station and repeater infrastructure. It is the only low-loss transparent film which can be aesthetically applied to windows and other surfaces to enhance 5G network coverage both outdoors and within buildings without requiring power or a network connection.
According to the release, “the promise of 5G networks is to deliver broadband speeds wirelessly, while allowing a much larger number of simultaneous connections, to enable powerful new applications for smart cities and enhanced mobility. A major challenge is that these higher-speed signals have shorter range than prior generations and are easily absorbed or blocked by objects in the environment. This causes dead spots in dense urban environments and within buildings. Solving the problem with additional base stations and repeaters is costly and requires access to suitable sites, power, and fiber optic backhaul connections.”
The stock has suffered a bit of late, with shares of MMAT taking a hit in recent action, down about -17% over the past week.
Meta Materials Inc. (Nasdaq:MMAT) managed to rope in revenues totaling $573K in overall sales during the company’s most recently reported quarterly financial data — a figure that represents a rate of top line growth of 827.7%, as compared to year-ago data in comparable terms. In addition, the company has a strong balance sheet, with cash levels exceeding current liabilities ($141.2M against $87.4M).
Other key names with ties to the Metaverse theme include Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U), Matterport Inc. (Nasdaq:MTTR), and the Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF (NYSEARCA:META).
