The CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX) shot to its highest level in 2025 on March 4 as the Trump administration tariffs went into effect. The VIX is colloquially known by traders as the “fear index,” and it loosely reminds investors of Warren Buffett’s adage to “be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy when others are fearful.”

If you follow Mr. Buffett’s advice, then now may be an attractive time to buy stocks. However, a value investor like Buffett would be the first to say that getting greedy with stocks doesn’t mean being reckless.

Many of the technology stocks that were the best performers in 2023 and 2024 are still good choices for long-term investors, but they may not be the best choices if you’re looking to start a position in 2025. With that in mind, here are three stocks with catalysts that make them the rising stars in 2025.

AI Is Likely to Keep Momentum Strong in FFIV Stock

Some investors may know F5 Inc. NASDAQ: FFIV as a cybersecurity company. However, the company is also known for providing distributed cloud services, networking, and application management solutions. In January, the company delivered its quarterly earnings with a beat on the top and bottom lines. And 72% of the company’s recurring revenue came from subscriptions, SaaS (software-as-a-service), managed services, and maintenance.

More importantly, it raised its guidance for both the current quarter and for the full year. A key to that growth will be the company’s BIG-IP Next Cloud-native Network Functions (CNFs), which will help companies meet the demands of on-device AI (i.e., the edge). The CNFs are deployed on NVIDIA Corp. NASDAQ: NVDA BlueField-3 data processing units (DPUs) and expand the company’s partnership with the tech giant.

Before falling back in February, FFIV stock was one of the top performers in the last 12 months. Even with the drop, the stock is up 49% in 2025, and analysts continue to raise their price targets.

Nuclear Energy Is Only One Part of Constellation Energy’s Story

Constellation Energy Corp. NASDAQ: CEG shot higher in September 2024 as Microsoft Corp. NASDAQ: MSFT announced a partnership with the company to restart the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The stock continued to surge in 2025 as investors got carried away by all things nuclear energy.

That story has legs, but it’s a long-term play. It will be years, for example, before the Three Mile Island plant is back in operation. But even a regulated utility like Constellation has value for investors in 2025. To begin with, electric demand is expected to increase for the rest of the decade. This isn’t simply about data centers; the nation’s entire electric grid needs updating.

Beyond electricity, Constellation has natural gas, hydroelectric, nuclear, wind, and solar operations. This diversified portfolio should set a high floor for the stock, which appears to have made a double-bottom pattern in December 2024.

Despite a 27% gain in the last 12 months, analysts maintain a Moderate Buy rating on CEG stock. Their consensus price target is $293.43, which is an additional 27% higher than its closing price on March 5, 2025.

CrowdStrike Is Recovering From a High-Profile Failure

When a cybersecurity company is the focus of a major incident, as CrowdStrike Inc. NASDAQ: CRWD was in summer 2024, it can be hard to recover. But after hitting a 52-week low in August 2024, CRWD stock is up 52%.

A key reason for the stock’s performance is two earnings reports, which have shown that the outage is “mostly in the rearview mirror” and demand for the company’s products and services remains strong.

CRWD stock has been falling since mid-February and continued to drop even after the company reported a double beat in earnings. However, CRWD stock had soared to over $400 a share in early 2025, so this is likely just a healthy pullback that long-term investors shouldn’t be too concerned about.

As evidence of that, analysts were quick to raise their price targets on CRWD stock immediately after the earnings report.

Before you consider CrowdStrike, you’ll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street’s top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on… and CrowdStrike wasn’t on the list.

While CrowdStrike currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.

View The Five Stocks Here

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CrowdStrike’s NASDAQ: CRWD uptrend will continue because the cybersecurity company has traction, momentum in its deal cycle, and a forecast for another record-setting year in 2025. The Q1 2025 stock price decline is an opportunity that shouldn’t be passed up. It was caused by unexpectedly weak earnings guidance, but there is a silver lining.

The expectation of higher tax rates impacts the guidance, resulting from its growing business and improving profitability. While a headwind, it is offset by robust cash flow and rapidly improving shareholder value, trends expected to continue this year. 

The analysts’ response to the 2024 earnings news says it all. MarketBeat tracks a relatively high number of analysts covering this stock, 44, and despite mixed activity following the release, the trends are only bullish. Analysts’ trends include increasing coverage, firming sentiment, a high conviction in the Moderate Buy rating, a bullish bias with 72% of the ratings pegged at Buy or higher, and a rising price target.

The consensus price target reported by MarketBeat implies a 12% upside from critical support levels, rising by 20% the day following the release. The revisions include some price target reductions, but all fresh targets are above the consensus, leading to the high-end range and another 15% upside when reached. 

Takeaways from the analyst chatter include concerns about slowing penetration growth and margin guidance, but positives overshadow them. Positives include improving deal momentum after last year’s outage, the 25% increase in ARR, and expected business acceleration. Dan Ives of Wedbush says the company is moving in the right direction and has reaffirmed the long-term outlook.

The long-term outlook includes a low 20% revenue CAGR through 2035, with bottom-line results compounded by a widening margin. Earnings are expected to grow at a more robust 30% CAGR, which puts this stock at only 11x its 2035 EPS target. 

CrowdStrike Insiders Sell Stock in Q1: Institutions Are Buying

The insider activity is a red flag for CrowdStrike investors but doesn’t negate the long-term outlook for share prices. Although they are selling in Q1 2025 and have sold on balance for numerous consecutive quarters, the sales are small, periodic, and from multiple insiders aligning with other companies that utilize share-based compensation. The more telling data is that insiders have considerable skin in the game, holding more than 4.25% of the stock, and the institutions are buying. 

Institutional activity is noteworthy because the group sold on balance in Q2 of 2024, reverted to buying in Q3 and ramped activity into Q1 of 2025. In only two months, the Q1 2025 activity set a two-year high and may surpass the prior peak before the quarter ends. They own more than 70% of the stock and strongly support this market. 

Analysts and institutions are on board because of CrowdStrike’s rapidly improving financial condition. At the end of 2024, the highlights included increased cash, current, and total assets, with total assets growing at nearly double the pace of liability. Total liability leverage fell to 1.6x equity from 1.85x, increasing equity by more than 40%. Similar gains are expected for F2025 because of the outlook for record earnings. 

The Technical Outlook: CrowdStrike Pulls Back to Test for Support

CrowdStrike’s stock price action in early 2025 is ugly, with the stock pulling back by 25%. However, the pullback is expected due to the rapid rise in share price from summer 2024 until Q1 2025 and move to new highs. The pullback is testing for support and shows it at a critical level, aligning with the 150-day EMA and previous price action.

Support is near the $355 level, coincident with a price gap that opened in June 2024 and a consolidation leading to new all-time highs at the year’s end. Assuming the market continues to support this stock at present levels, the rebound should begin soon and could take this market to a new high by the end of 2025.

Before you consider CrowdStrike, you’ll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street’s top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on… and CrowdStrike wasn’t on the list.

While CrowdStrike currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.

View The Five Stocks Here

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