3 Cash-Producing Stocks in the Doghouse

A company that generates cash isn’t automatically a winner. Some businesses stockpile cash but fail to reinvest wisely, limiting their ability to expand.

Luckily for you, we built StockStory to help you separate the good from the bad. Keeping that in mind, here are three cash-producing companies that don’t make the cut and some better opportunities instead.

EverQuote (EVER)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 13%

Aiming to simplify a once complicated process, EverQuote (NASDAQ:EVER) is an online insurance marketplace where consumers can compare and purchase various types of insurance from different providers

Why Are We Wary of EVER?

1. Highly competitive market means it’s on the never-ending treadmill of sales and marketing spend

EverQuote is trading at $24 per share, or 11.5x forward EV/EBITDA. To fully understand why you should be careful with EVER, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Apogee (APOG)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 6.6%

Involved in the design of the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue in New York City, Apogee (NASDAQ:APOG) sells architectural products and services such as high-performance glass for commercial buildings.

Why Does APOG Worry Us?

1. Sales stagnated over the last five years and signal the need for new growth strategies
2. Sales are projected to be flat over the next 12 months and imply weak demand
3. Free cash flow margin shrank by 2.8 percentage points over the last five years, suggesting the company is consuming more capital to stay competitive

Apogee’s stock price of $41.38 implies a valuation ratio of 9.8x forward P/E. If you’re considering APOG for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Ford (F)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 5.1%

Established to make automobiles accessible to a broader segment of the population, Ford (NYSE:F) designs, manufactures, and sells a variety of automobiles, trucks, and electric vehicles.

Why Do We Avoid F?

1. Flat vehicles sold over the past two years show it’s struggled to increase its sales volumes and had to rely on price increases
2. Free cash flow margin dropped by 13.4 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
3. High net-debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 8× increases the risk of forced asset sales or dilutive financing if operational performance weakens

At $10.69 per share, Ford trades at 7.9x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including F in your portfolio.

Stocks We Like More

Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs.

While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like 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 176% over the last five years.

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 Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.