Add These 4 Top-Ranked Liquid Stocks to Boost Portfolio Returns

Investors looking for solid gains should benefit from adding stocks with sound liquidity, which encourages business growth. Liquidity measures a company’s capability to meet short-term debt obligations. Stocks with high liquidity levels have always been in demand, owing to their potential to provide maximum returns.

Investors may want to consider adding four top-ranked stocks — AngloGold Ashanti plc AU, Columbia Sportswear Company COLM,  Roku, Inc. ROKU and TTM Technologies, Inc. TTMI — to their portfolios to boost returns.

However, one should be alert enough before investing in such stocks. While a high liquidity level may imply that the company is clearing its dues faster than its peers, it may also indicate that the company is failing to use its assets efficiently. A balanced assessment of both liquidity and efficiency can help identify truly promising investment opportunities.

Measures to Identify Liquid Stocks

Current Ratio: It measures current assets relative to current liabilities. The ratio gauges a company’s potential to meet short- and long-term debt obligations. A current ratio — the working capital ratio — below 1 indicates that the company has more liabilities than assets. A high current ratio does not always suggest that the company is in good financial shape. It may also indicate that the firm failed to utilize its assets significantly. Hence, a range of 1-3 is considered ideal.

Quick Ratio: Unlike the current ratio, the quick ratio — the “acid-test ratio” or “quick assets ratio” — indicates a company’s ability to pay short-term obligations. It considers inventory, excluding current assets, relative to current liabilities. A quick ratio of more than 1 is desirable, like the current ratio.

Cash Ratio: This is the most conservative ratio among the three, considering cash and cash equivalents and invested funds relative to current liabilities. It measures a company’s ability to meet existing debt obligations using the most liquid assets. Though a cash ratio of more than 1 may suggest sound financials, a higher number may indicate inefficiency in cash utilization.

A ratio greater than 1 is always desirable, but it may not always represent a company’s financial condition.

Screening Parameters

To pick the best of the lot, we have added asset utilization — a widely used measure of a company’s efficiency — as one of the screening criteria. Asset utilization is the ratio of total sales in the past 12 months to the last four-quarter average of total assets. Though this ratio varies across industries, companies with a ratio higher than that of their industry can be considered efficient.

We added our proprietary Growth Score to the screen to ensure these liquid and efficient stocks have solid growth potential.

Current Ratio, Quick Ratio, and Cash Ratio between 1 and 3: While liquidity ratios greater than 1 are desirable, significantly high ratios may indicate inefficiency.

Asset utilization is more significant than the industry average: A higher asset utilization than the industry average indicates a company’s efficiency.

Zacks Rank equal to #1 (Strong Buy): Only Strong Buy-rated stocks can get through. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Growth Score less than or equal to B: Back-tested results show that stocks with a Growth Score of A or B handily beat other stocks when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2 (Buy).

These criteria have narrowed the universe of more than 7,700 stocks to only eight

Here are four of the eight stocks that qualified the screen:

AngloGold Ashanti is one of the major gold mining companies in the world with operations across 10 countries.

AU is slated to report its fourth-quarter 2025 results on Feb. 20. The company has reiterated its 2025 guidance for gold production, cost and capital spending. In the third quarter, gold production surged 17% year over year. The addition of the Sukari mine (Egypt) to the portfolio bodes well. AU also acquired Augusta Gold Corp in October 2025. This move boosts its position in one of the important emerging gold districts in the United States.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AU’s 2025 earnings is pegged at $5.62 per share, unchanged in the past seven days. The company has a Growth Score of A.

Columbia Sportswear Company engages in the sourcing, marketing and distribution of outdoor and active lifestyle apparel, footwear, accessories and equipment in the United States and internationally. COLM is focusing on its ACCELERATE strategy to target younger consumers through revitalized branding and strong digital marketing.

COLM recently reported fourth-quarter 2025 results, wherein net sales of $1,070.2 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,037 million but fell 2% year over year. The decline was timing-related, as some Fall 2025 wholesale shipments were pulled forward into earlier periods.  Continued momentum in the direct-to-consumer channel and solid performance in international markets were positives, while weaker demand was witnessed in the United States. For 2026, the company expects net sales to grow 1% to 3%, implying revenues of $3.43 billion to $3.5 billion, up from nearly $3.4 billion in 2025.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for COLM’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $3.30 per share. The company has a Growth Score of A and a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 25.2%, on average.

Roku is one of the prominent streaming platforms in the United States.

The company will report fourth-quarter 2025 results today after market close. Roku expects net revenues to be $1.35 billion, up 12% year over year. Platform revenues are expected to grow 15% year over year, with a gross margin of around 52%. For 2025, Roku has raised its outlook, projecting platform revenues of $4.11 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $395 million. Platform revenues are being driven by strength in streaming services distribution and video advertising activities. It is working on strengthening integrations with third party ad demand and measurement platforms.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ROKU’s 2025 earnings is pegged at 32 cents per share. The company has a Growth Score of A and a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 86.85%, on average.

TTM Technologies manufactures a wide range of technology products, including radio frequency (“RF”) components, RF microwave/microelectronic assemblies, mission systems and advanced interconnect products like substrates and PCBs.

TTMI recently reported fourth-quarter 2025 results wherein net sales of $774.3 million surged 19% year on year. Momentum in the Data Center Computing and Networking end markets was the key catalyst. End market revenues from these verticals increased to 36% of total company revenues amid the proliferation of generative AI demand. TTMI reported a fourth-quarter book-to-bill ratio of 1.35, with its Aerospace & Defense program backlog reaching $1.6 billion. For 2026, the company expects net sales to grow in the 15% to 20% range. Revenues for 2025 were $2.9 billion, up 19%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TTMI’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $3.24 per share. The company has a Growth Score of B and a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 13.1%, on average.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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