When Should Investors Buy a Stock?

• (0:45) - Finding The Perfect Time When Buying Stocks
• (4:30) - Breaking Down 5 Stocks That Might Help You Learn Buying Opportunities 
• (27:25) - Episode Roundup: MCD, SNDK, NVDA, NEM, C
• Podcast@Zacks.com

Welcome to Episode #501 of the Zacks Market Edge Podcast.

Every week, host and Zacks stock strategist, Tracey Ryniec, is joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds, and ETFs and how it impacts your life.

This week, Tracey went solo to talk about when investors should buy a stock. A listener wrote in that he was unsure when to go all in on a stock or when to dollar cost average. He was having a hard time knowing when to buy.

Traders have it easier because they use chart patterns to buy and sell. But long-term investors might not have those strategies. It can leave them frozen, unsure on when to buy a stock.

In some cases, investors may not end up buying the stock at all.

3 Stock Scenarios with Tips to Help Investors Get Off the Couch

1. McDonald’s Corp. (MCD)

McDonald’s shares have fallen 22% year-to-date and are at multi-year lows on worries over the consumer and growth. This is one of the most difficult scenarios when buying a stock: the stock with downward momentum which is making new multi-year lows.

Even with the stock sliding, McDonald’s is not a “cheap” stock on a price-to-earning (P/E) basis. It trades with a forward P/E of 19.4. A P/E under 15 usually indicates value.

McDonald’s is also not a growth stock. Sales are expected to be up just 4.8% this year with earnings growth of 5.6%.

Many investors get frozen on a stock that has fallen for several months.

Should you buy McDonald’s right now?

2. Sandisk Corp. (SNDK)

Sandisk is an AI Revolution stock which soared into June 2026. But it was too hot and gave back a bunch of it into the end of July 2026. However, Sandisk is again rallying and is up 13.8% over the last month.

Year-to-date, the shares are still up 665%.

Sandisk is the momentum stock scenario. In that scenario, a stock gets so hot that an investor is scared to get in.

But Sandisk has not regained its high and it’s genuinely cheap on a P/E basis. It trades with a forward P/E of just 8.9. A P/E under 10 usually indicates a company is dirt cheap.

Earnings are expected to rise 201% this year on sales growth of 143%.

Sandisk is both a growth and a value stock. That’s a rare combination.

How do you know when to buy a momentum stock like Sandisk?

3. NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA)

NVIDIA is the leader in the AI Revolution trade. Shares are up 903% over the last five years and have added another 21% in 2026.

NVIDIA is one of the Magnificent 7 stocks and in the exclusive “trillion-dollar” market cap club.

The shares have been going up for so many years that many investors get frozen about when to buy in.

Yet, the valuations have gotten more attractive over the last year. NVIDIA now trades with a forward P/E of 24, which is too high to make it a classic value, but it’s low for NVIDIA historically.

Earnings are expected to rise 93.9% this fiscal year on sales growth of 88%.

NVIDIA has the coveted Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) again as analysts have raised their full year earnings estimates.

For investors who have been waiting on the sidelines, uncertain on when to buy a stock, the Zacks Rank can provide some guidance even though it’s a short-term recommendation of just 1 to 3 months.

Does the Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) give you confidence to buy NVIDIA right now?

What About Cyclical and Value Stocks?

There are two more scenarios that Tracey talks about on the podcast.

Tune into this week’s episode to find out what strategies you should use to buy cyclical and value stocks.

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

Zacks Investment Research