
The stocks featured in this article have all approached their 52-week highs. When these price levels hit, it typically signals strong business execution, positive market sentiment, or significant industry tailwinds.
However, not all companies with momentum are long-term winners, and many investors have lost money by following short-term trends. Keeping that in mind, here is one stock we think lives up to the hype and two that may correct.
Two Stocks to Sell:
Kulicke and Soffa (KLIC)
One-Month Return: +29.5%
Headquartered in Singapore, Kulicke & Soffa (NASDAQ: KLIC) is a provider of production equipment and tools used to assemble semiconductor devices
Why Is KLIC Risky?
- Products and services are facing significant end-market challenges during this cycle as sales have declined by 1.6% annually over the last five years
- Inability to adjust its cost structure while its revenue declined over the last five years led to a 40.3 percentage point drop in the company’s operating margin
- Sales were less profitable over the last five years as its earnings per share fell by 29.8% annually, worse than its revenue declines
Kulicke and Soffa is trading at $73.44 per share, or 24.5x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including KLIC in your portfolio.
Crown Holdings (CCK)
One-Month Return: +9.1%
Formerly Crown Cork & Seal, Crown Holdings (NYSE: CCK) produces packaging products for consumer marketing companies, including food, beverage, household, and industrial products.
Why Are We Cautious About CCK?
- Scale is a double-edged sword because it limits the company’s growth potential compared to its smaller competitors, as reflected in its below-average annual revenue increases of 1.3% for the last five years
- Demand will likely be soft over the next 12 months as Wall Street’s estimates imply tepid growth of 4.6%
- High input costs result in an inferior gross margin of 21.1% that must be offset through higher volumes
Crown Holdings’s stock price of $110.79 implies a valuation ratio of 13.6x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than CCK.
One Stock to Buy:
ESCO (ESE)
One-Month Return: +21.5%
A developer of the communication systems used in the Batmobile of “The Dark Knight,” ESCO (NYSE: ESE) is a provider of engineered components for the aerospace, defense, and utility sectors.
Why Are We Backing ESE?
- Average backlog growth of 41.7% over the past two years shows it has a steady sales pipeline that will drive future orders
- Incremental sales significantly boosted profitability as its annual earnings per share growth of 36.3% over the last two years outstripped its revenue performance
- Free cash flow margin grew by 10.9 percentage points over the last five years, giving the company more chips to play with
At $268 per share, ESCO trades at 32.5x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our full research report, it’s free.
High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions
The market’s up big this year - but there’s a catch. Just 4 stocks account for half the S&P 500’s entire gain. That kind of concentration makes investors nervous, and for good reason. While everyone piles into the same crowded names, smart investors are hunting quality where no one’s looking - and paying a fraction of the price. Check out the high-quality names we’ve flagged in 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-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
