After more than a decade of incredible outperformance, growth stocks badly underperformed a falling market in 2022. With the Federal Reserve bringing the era of ultra-low interest rates to an end (at least for now), value stocks are back in fashion.

But that doesn't mean growth companies are dead. Far from it. Many companies that can generate strong sales and profitability look like compelling buys as we kick off 2023, and the five I'm most excited about are Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) (NASDAQ: GOOG), ASML Holding (NASDAQ: ASML), Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX), Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT), and Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ: LULU).

There's no shortage of worries for Google parent Alphabet right now. There are antitrust issues, and it has been fined repeatedly by regulators in the European Union, the U.S., and elsewhere. Google has a new competitor on its hands with the explosion in popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT. And the advertising industry, through which Google monetizes its core internet search business, has slowed significantly due to global macroeconomic problems. Alphabet's growth and profit margins took a big hit in 2022 as a result.

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Source Fool.com