Each stock in this article is trading near its 52-week high. These elevated prices usually indicate some degree of investor confidence, business improvements, or favorable market conditions.
While momentum can be a leading indicator, it has burned many investors as it doesn’t always correlate with long-term success. Keeping that in mind, here is one stock with the fundamentals to back up its performance and two best left ignored.
Two Industrials Stocks to Sell:
RXO (RXO)
One-Month Return: +29.3%
With access to millions of trucks, RXO (NYSE:RXO) offers full-truckload, less-than-truckload, and last-mile deliveries.
Why Do We Avoid RXO?
- Declining unit sales over the past two years suggest it might have to lower prices to accelerate growth
- Shrinking returns on capital from an already weak position reveal that neither previous nor ongoing investments are yielding the desired results
- Limited cash reserves may force the company to seek unfavorable financing terms that could dilute shareholders
RXO is trading at $24.74 per share, or 174.9x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than RXO.
Landstar (LSTR)
One-Month Return: +7.8%
Covering billions of miles throughout North America, Landstar (NASDAQ:LSTR) is a transportation company specializing in freight and last-mile delivery services.
Why Should You Dump LSTR?
- Sales tumbled by 2.8% annually over the last two years, showing market trends are working against its favor during this cycle
- Incremental sales over the last five years were much less profitable as its earnings per share fell by 8.1% annually while its revenue grew
- Waning returns on capital imply its previous profit engines are losing steam
At $191.20 per share, Landstar trades at 31.9x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including LSTR in your portfolio.
One Industrials Stock to Watch:
Valmont (VMI)
One-Month Return: +8.6%
Credited with an invention in the 1950s that improved crop yields, Valmont (NYSE:VMI) provides engineered products and infrastructure services for the agricultural industry.
Why Are We Positive On VMI?
- Operating profits increased over the last five years as the company gained some leverage on its fixed costs and became more efficient
- Earnings per share grew by 57.6% annually over the last two years, massively outpacing its peers
- Free cash flow margin grew by 10.2 percentage points over the last five years, giving the company more chips to play with
Valmont’s stock price of $506.93 implies a valuation ratio of 2.3x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions
ALSO WORTH WATCHING: Top 5 Momentum Stocks. The best time to own a great stock is when the market is finally noticing it. These aren’t just high-quality businesses. Something is happening with them right now. Elite fundamentals meeting near-term momentum – both boxes checked at the same time.
Find out which stocks our AI platform is flagging this week. See this week’s Strong Momentum stocks – FREE. Get Our Strong Momentum Stocks for Free HERE.
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
