While the S&P 500 (^GSPC) includes industry leaders, not every stock in the index is a winner. Some companies are past their prime, weighed down by poor execution, weak financials, or structural headwinds.
Some large-cap stocks are past their peak, and StockStory is here to help you separate the winners from the laggards. Keeping that in mind, here is one S&P 500 stock that is leading the market forward and two best left off your watchlist.
Two Stocks to Sell:
Avery Dennison (AVY)
Market Cap: $14.29 billion
Founded as Kum Kleen Products, Avery Dennison (NYSE: AVY) is a manufacturer of adhesive materials, display graphics, and packaging products, serving various industries.
Why Does AVY Give Us Pause?
- Absence of organic revenue growth over the past two years suggests it may have to lean into acquisitions to drive its expansion
- 2.5 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin over the last five years reflects the company’s increased investments to defend its market position
- Waning returns on capital imply its previous profit engines are losing steam
At $182.54 per share, Avery Dennison trades at 18.7x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why AVY doesn’t pass our bar.
Cisco (CSCO)
Market Cap: $312 billion
Founded in 1984 by a husband and wife team who wanted computers at Stanford to talk to computers at UC Berkeley, Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) designs and sells networking equipment, security solutions, and collaboration tools that help businesses connect their systems and secure their digital operations.
Why Is CSCO Not Exciting?
- Sales stagnated over the last two years and signal the need for new growth strategies
- Free cash flow margin dropped by 5.8 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
- Diminishing returns on capital suggest its earlier profit pools are drying up
Cisco’s stock price of $78.69 implies a valuation ratio of 18.7x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than CSCO.
One Stock to Watch:
Intuit (INTU)
Market Cap: $149.9 billion
Originally named after its founding product "Intuitive for the first-time user," Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU) provides financial management software and services including TurboTax, QuickBooks, Credit Karma, and Mailchimp to help consumers and small businesses manage their finances.
Why Are We Fans of INTU?
- Average billings growth of 17.8% over the last year enhances its liquidity and shows there is steady demand for its products
- Healthy operating margin of 26.7% shows it’s a well-run company with efficient processes, and its profits increased over the last year as it scaled
- Robust free cash flow margin of 32.7% gives it many options for capital deployment
Intuit is trading at $538.34 per share, or 7x forward price-to-sales. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Stocks We Like Even More
If your portfolio success hinges on just 4 stocks, your wealth is built on fragile ground. You have a small window to secure high-quality assets before the market widens and these prices disappear.
Don’t wait for the next volatility shock. Check out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 244% over the last five years (as of June 30, 2025).
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-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
