The past year hasn't been kind to the stocks featured in this article. Each has tumbled to their lowest points in 12 months, leaving investors to decide whether they're witnessing fire sales or falling knives.
Price charts only tell part of the story. Our team at StockStory evaluates each company's underlying fundamentals to separate temporary setbacks from structural declines. That said, here are two stocks poised to prove the bears wrong and one facing legitimate challenges.
One Stock to Sell:
Coty (COTY)
One-Month Return: -10.5%
With a portfolio boasting many household brands, Coty (NYSE: COTY) is a beauty products powerhouse spanning cosmetics, fragrances, and skincare.
Why Is COTY Not Exciting?
- Organic revenue growth fell short of our benchmarks over the past two years and implies it may need to improve its products, pricing, or go-to-market strategy
- Demand will likely fall over the next 12 months as Wall Street expects flat revenue
- ROIC of 1% reflects management’s challenges in identifying attractive investment opportunities
Coty’s stock price of $5.09 implies a valuation ratio of 8.9x forward price-to-earnings. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why COTY doesn’t pass our bar.
Two Stocks to Watch:
First Solar (FSLR)
One-Month Return: -11.7%
Headquartered in Arizona, First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) specializes in manufacturing solar panels and providing photovoltaic solar energy solutions.
Why Will FSLR Beat the Market?
- Annual revenue growth of 26.7% over the last two years was superb and indicates its market share increased during this cycle
- Incremental sales significantly boosted profitability as its annual earnings per share growth of 453% over the last two years outstripped its revenue performance
- Negative free cash flow margin has improved over the last five years, showing the company is one step closer to financial self-sufficiency
At $122.80 per share, First Solar trades at 5.8x forward price-to-earnings. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Exact Sciences (EXAS)
One-Month Return: -3.6%
With a mission to detect cancer earlier when it's more treatable, Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: EXAS) develops and markets cancer screening and diagnostic tests, including its flagship Cologuard stool-based colorectal cancer screening test.
Why Do We Watch EXAS?
- Steady constant currency growth over the past two years shows the company can pursue its global ambitions, even in uncertain economic times
- Adjusted operating margin expanded by 21.5 percentage points over the last two years as it scaled and became more efficient
- Earnings per share have comfortably outperformed the peer group average over the last five years, increasing by 12.6% annually
Exact Sciences is trading at $44.26 per share, or 220.4x forward price-to-earnings. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free.
Stocks We Like Even More
Market indices reached historic highs following Donald Trump’s presidential victory in November 2024, but the outlook for 2025 is clouded by new trade policies that could impact business confidence and growth.
While this has caused many investors to adopt a "fearful" wait-and-see approach, we’re leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Take advantage of Mr. Market by checking out our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 175% over the last five years.
Stocks that made our list in 2019 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+2,183% between December 2019 and December 2024) as well as under-the-radar businesses like United Rentals (+322% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.
