As brutal as 2022 has been, media outlets keep trumpeting headlines to the tune of "things will get worse in 2023." With the Federal Reserve indicating it isn't through with its interest rate hikes to try to throttle the economy (in an attempt to get inflation under control), worry is mounting that a recession could strike. All this suggests business profitability is due for a big slowdown, if not a contraction, heading into the new year.

Despite the messy state of affairs out there, more than a few companies are more than holding their own. While the market could care less about business performance right at the moment, once the mood improves, top growth stocks are set to launch. Three Fool.com contributors think Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW), Ring Central (NYSE: RNG), and Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ) are a buy right now.

Nicholas Rossolillo (Palo Alto Networks): Cybersecurity has become an incredibly important component of the digital world. With critical personal and business data zipping across the web, new security measures are needed to counter the constantly evolving efforts of those with nefarious intent. Lots of high-flying cloud-computing-native upstarts get plenty of attention from investors. However, Palo Alto Networks is far and away the leader in pure-play cybersecurity services (as measured by market cap and revenue).  

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Source Fool.com