2 Unpopular Stocks That Deserve a Second Chance and 1 We Brush Off

Wall Street’s bearish price targets for the stocks in this article signal serious concerns. Such forecasts are uncommon in an industry where maintaining cordial corporate relationships often trumps delivering the hard truth.

Whatever the consensus opinion may be, our team at StockStory cuts through the noise by conducting independent analysis to determine a company’s long-term prospects. That said, here are two stocks poised to prove Wall Street wrong and one facing legitimate challenges.

One Stock to Sell:

FTI Consulting (FCN)

Consensus Price Target: $185 (10% implied return)

With a team of experts deployed across 30+ countries to tackle complex business challenges, FTI Consulting (NYSE:FCN) is a global business advisory firm that helps organizations manage change, mitigate risk, and resolve disputes across financial, legal, operational, and regulatory matters.

Why Does FCN Give Us Pause?

1. Day-to-day expenses have swelled relative to revenue over the last five years as its adjusted operating margin fell by 3.1 percentage points
2. Earnings per share lagged its peers over the last two years as they only grew by 7.6% annually
3. Capital intensity has ramped up over the last five years as its free cash flow margin decreased by 6 percentage points

FTI Consulting’s stock price of $168.23 implies a valuation ratio of 20.6x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with FCN, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Two Stocks to Watch:

Nextracker (NXT)

Consensus Price Target: $70.68 (1.7% implied return)

With its technology playing a key role in the massive 1.2 gigawatt Noor Abu Dhabi solar farm project, Nextracker (NASDAQ:NXT) is a provider of solar tracker systems that help solar panels follow the sun.

Why Do We Love NXT?

1. Average backlog growth of 41.7% over the past two years shows it has a steady sales pipeline that will drive future orders
2. Free cash flow margin grew by 13.7 percentage points over the last five years, giving the company more chips to play with
3. Rising returns on capital show management is finding more attractive investment opportunities

Nextracker is trading at $69.47 per share, or 17.7x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

Humana (HUM)

Consensus Price Target: $291.82 (-2.7% implied return)

With over 80% of its revenue derived from federal government contracts, Humana (NYSE:HUM) provides health insurance plans and healthcare services to approximately 17 million members, with a strong focus on Medicare Advantage plans for seniors.

Why Are We Positive On HUM?

1. 11.8% annual revenue growth over the last five years was better than the sector average, highlighting the value of its products and services
2. Unparalleled scale of $123.1 billion in revenue enables it to spread administrative costs across a larger membership base
3. Market-beating returns on capital illustrate that management has a knack for investing in profitable ventures

At $300 per share, Humana trades at 20.1x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free.

Stocks We Like Even More

When Trump unveiled his aggressive tariff plan in April 2025, markets tanked as investors feared a full-blown trade war. But those who panicked and sold missed the subsequent rebound that’s already erased most losses.

Don’t let fear keep you from great opportunities and take a look at Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 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 for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

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