1 Unpopular Stock That Deserves a Second Chance and 2 Facing Challenges

When Wall Street turns bearish on a stock, it’s worth paying attention. These calls stand out because analysts rarely issue grim ratings on companies for fear their firms will lose out in other business lines such as M&A advisory.

At StockStory, we look beyond the headlines with our independent analysis to determine whether these bearish calls are justified. That said, here is one stock where you should be greedy instead of fearful and two where the skepticism is well-placed.

Two Stocks to Sell:

Manitowoc (MTW)

Consensus Price Target: $10 (-12.6% implied return)

Contracted by the United States Navy during WWII, Manitowoc (NYSE:MTW) provides cranes and lifting equipment.

Why Do We Pass on MTW?

1. Product roadmap and go-to-market strategy need to be reconsidered as its backlog has averaged 15.3% declines over the past two years
2. Earnings per share fell by 17.6% annually over the last five years while its revenue grew, showing its incremental sales were much less profitable
3. Capital intensity has ramped up over the last five years as its free cash flow margin decreased by 6.7 percentage points

Manitowoc is trading at $11.44 per share, or 0.2x trailing 12-month price-to-sales. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than MTW.

Integral Ad Science (IAS)

Consensus Price Target: $10.59 (3.6% implied return)

Processing over 280 billion digital ad interactions daily through its AI-powered technology, Integral Ad Science (NASDAQ:IAS) provides a cloud-based platform that measures and verifies digital advertising across devices, channels, and formats to ensure ads are viewable, fraud-free, and brand-safe.

Why Is IAS Not Exciting?

1. Sales trends were unexciting over the last two years as its 14% annual growth was below the typical software company
2. Operating profits increased over the last year as the company gained some leverage on its fixed costs and became more efficient
3. Free cash flow margin is forecasted to shrink by 7.9 percentage points in the coming year, suggesting the company will consume more capital to keep up with its competitors

At $10.22 per share, Integral Ad Science trades at 2.7x forward price-to-sales. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including IAS in your portfolio.

One Stock to Buy:

Oscar Health (OSCR)

Consensus Price Target: $12.38 (-37.2% implied return)

Founded in 2012 to simplify the notoriously complex American healthcare system, Oscar Health (NYSE:OSCR) is a technology-focused health insurance company that offers individual and small group health plans through its cloud-native platform.

Why Is OSCR a Top Pick?

1. Annual revenue growth of 47% over the last two years was superb and indicates its market share increased during this cycle
2. Adjusted operating margin expanded by 33.5 percentage points over the last five years as it scaled and became more efficient
3. Earnings per share have massively outperformed its peers over the last four years, increasing by 19.3% annually

Oscar Health’s stock price of $19.69 implies a valuation ratio of 0.4x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free for active Edge members.

Stocks We Like Even More

Donald Trump’s April 2025 "Liberation Day" tariffs sent markets into a tailspin, but stocks have since rebounded strongly, proving that knee-jerk reactions often create the best buying opportunities.

The smart money is already positioning for the next leg up. Don’t miss out on the recovery - check 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 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-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% 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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