Unlike a slot machine, investment ideas typically take time to marinate, although impatient investors may seek hot stocks to buy now. For various reasons, these underlying enterprises may be on the cusp of imminent upside. Therefore, speculators may want to get in before the wave does.

To be 100% clear, there are zero guarantees with these high-potential stocks to buy now. Perhaps they might swing higher tomorrow. Or they could go rangebound, loop around in circles and finally crumble, leaving you desperate and angry. Honestly, if I had a crystal ball about these things, I wouldn’t be writing these articles! Nevertheless, certain indicators may signal that upside may be cooking. Do your own research and take a look at these possible top-performing stocks of the near future.

Skillz (SKLZ)

An online mobile multiplayer video game competition platform, Skillz (NYSE:SKLZ) generated tremendous buzz during the most difficult time of the Covid-19 crisis. After all, with global government agencies crimping non-essential activities, digital entertainment platforms soared to prominence. At one point, on an average weekly basis, SKLZ traded hands at nearly $900 a pop. You’d have difficulty finding a better candidate for hot stocks to buy now.

Unfortunately, that was then. With consumers tired of sitting at home all day, once Covid restrictions faded, they stormed out and sought pre-pandemic experiences catering to socialization. Enter revenge travel. Predictably, SKLZ crumbled, and even for the year so far, shares find themselves down almost 16%. Nevertheless, as a swing trade, SKLZ could be one of the high-potential stocks.

Basically, speculators are banking on a short squeeze. Right now, SKLZ’s short interest as a percentage of its float is 239.26%. Also, its short-interest ratio stands at a whopping 104.7 days to cover. While I’m not big on these memes, these stats are outrageous. Thus, SKLZ could be one of the top-performing stocks.

Telus (TIXT)

When it comes to hot stocks to buy now, I suppose that you can simply look at possible short-squeeze lists. However, I decided to go a different route with Telus (NYSE:TIXT). A lesser-known enterprise, Telus is a Canadian technology company that provides information technology services and multilingual customer service to global clients. If I’m being honest, it sounds boring and investors apparently agree.

Since the Jan. opener, TIXT fell more than 25%. In the trailing year, it’s down a worrying 42%. High-potential stocks to buy now? Right now, it seems like TIXT is destined for the trash heap. However, it might not deserve the red ink. On a per-share basis, Telus’ three-year revenue growth rate pings at 34.9%, above 87.99% of companies listed in the software industry.

Also, the company features a trailing-year net margin of 6.32%, ranked above 68.52% of rivals. Still, the market prices TIXT at a forward multiple of 9.04, ranked better than 91.87% of the competition. Put another way, it’s the only company that features such strong sales and margins and yet is so undervalued. TIXT just might turn out to be one of the top-performing stocks.

Offerpad (OPAD)

By bringing up Offerpad (NYSE:OPAD), I want to make it 100% clear that it’s one of the hot stocks for short-term speculation. As a tech-enabled platform to accelerate the home selling and buying experience, the fundamentals in my opinion don’t work. With the Federal Reserve still wrestling with stubborn inflation and companies continuing to lay off their employees, now’s arguably not the time to start messing around with housing-related investments.

That said, traders anticipate that a short squeeze will materialize in OPAD. Presently, its short interest stands at 112.58 of its float. Also, its short interest ratio clocks in at 139.7 days to cover. Frankly, these are absurd statistics so yeah, it’s possible that OPAD could swing higher.

Also, on a fundamental note, some folks may believe that the Fed will start raising rates toward the end of the year. Under this possible framework, it’s better to lock in a relatively attractive interest rate. After all, home prices haven’t really come down substantively so prospective buyers don’t want to be stuck in a worst-of-both-worlds situation (i.e. high rates and high prices). Still, I’m worried about overexposure here so please be careful.

On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.