Key Points
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Many Americans receive market-average returns through broad index funds, while others seek individual companies with additional growth potential.
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MercadoLibre combines rapid e-commerce growth with an expanding Latin American financial-services business.
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Sprouts Farmers Market combines national expansion potential with an aggressive share-repurchase program.
Americans’ participation in the stock market has grown steadily over the past century, aided by widespread 401(k) plans, individual retirement accounts, and mobile-friendly brokerage platforms. Roughly 200 million people in the United States now own stocks in some form.
Many investors rely on diversified index funds, including products tracking the S&P 500. These funds can be cost-effective, but valuations near historic highs may constrain near-term returns. Others concentrate their portfolios in heavily promoted themes such as artificial intelligence (AI), potentially increasing risk. Investors seeking company-specific growth may therefore want to examine established businesses with meaningful expansion opportunities.
An e-commerce and financial-services leader
MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI) has generated exceptional long-term returns, rising approximately 6,200% since its public listing roughly two decades ago.
The company operates e-commerce and financial-services platforms across Latin America, with major markets including Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina. Similar to Amazon, it provides customers with a broad product selection, fast shipping, and bundled membership benefits. In its latest reported quarter, gross merchandise volume increased 36% to $22 billion, indicating continued momentum.
MercadoLibre’s advantage extends beyond online retail. Because banking infrastructure remains less developed in parts of Latin America, the company’s financial services address an important need. Through the MercadoPago app, consumers can access loans, direct deposits, and credit cards while earning discounts on MercadoLibre purchases. Merchants can use the platform for payment processing and financing. Fintech revenue increased 49% year over year in the latest quarter, reflecting strong market-share gains.
With its commerce platform continuing to grow and its financial-services ecosystem still far from mature across the region, MercadoLibre has a substantial long-term growth runway.
Image source: Getty Images.
A focused grocery-store growth strategy
Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM) is a less widely followed company building an organic and health-oriented grocery chain across the United States. The business opened seven stores during its latest quarter, bringing its total to 490 locations and leaving considerable room for further expansion.
Sprouts differentiates itself by offering fresh foods, vitamins, and specialty products at accessible prices. That positioning appeals to shoppers seeking healthier ingredients for meals prepared at home.
The stock has declined as comparable-store sales growth slows. Management is guiding for 0% comparable-sales growth in 2026, compared with 7.3% last year. The company says the change reflects less a weakening in its core customer base than the disappearance of a sales boost from products that briefly went viral on TikTok.
Over the long term, Sprouts can continue expanding into new U.S. markets while returning capital through share repurchases. Its outstanding share count has fallen 35.5% over the past decade, making buybacks an important contributor to earnings growth.
With a price-to-earnings ratio below 13, Sprouts trades at a relatively modest valuation for a business with substantial room to grow. Lower multiples generally allow repurchases to generate more earnings per remaining share. Combined with steady expansion, that strategy has helped earnings per share rise by roughly 500% over the past decade.