3 of Wall Street’s Favorite Stocks Walking a Fine Line

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3 of Wall Street’s Favorite Stocks Walking a Fine Line

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Wall Street is overwhelmingly bullish on the stocks in this article, with price targets suggesting significant upside potential. However, it’s worth remembering that analysts rarely issue sell ratings, partly because their firms often seek other business from the same companies they cover.

Luckily for you, we at StockStory have no conflicts of interest - our sole job is to help you find genuinely promising companies. That said, here are three stocks where Wall Street may be overlooking some important risks and some alternatives with better fundamentals.

Asure (ASUR)

Consensus Price Target: $14.33 (41.4% implied return)

Created from the merger of two small workforce management companies in 2007, Asure (NASDAQ:ASUR) provides cloud based payroll and HR software for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Why Does ASUR Worry Us?

  1. 15.1% annual revenue growth over the last three years was slower than its software peers

  2. Average billings growth of 7.9% over the last year was subpar, suggesting it struggled to push its software and might have to lower prices to stimulate demand

  3. Costs have risen faster than its revenue over the last year, causing its operating margin to decline by 5.4 percentage points

At $10.14 per share, Asure trades at 2x forward price-to-sales. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than ASUR.

Lovesac (LOVE)

Consensus Price Target: $31.67 (56.5% implied return)

Known for its oversized, premium beanbags, Lovesac (NASDAQ:LOVE) is a specialty furniture brand selling modular furniture.

Why Are We Wary of LOVE?

  1. Annual revenue growth of 2.2% over the last two years was below our standards for the consumer discretionary sector

  2. Free cash flow margin is forecasted to shrink by 1.5 percentage points in the coming year, suggesting the company will consume more capital to keep up with its competitors

  3. Eroding returns on capital suggest its historical profit centers are aging

Lovesac is trading at $20.23 per share, or 45.9x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with LOVE, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Methode Electronics (MEI)

Consensus Price Target: $10.50 (48.5% implied return)

Founded in 1946, Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI) is a global supplier of custom-engineered solutions for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).

Why Should You Sell MEI?

  1. Sales stagnated over the last five years and signal the need for new growth strategies

  2. Free cash flow margin dropped by 19.6 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up

  3. Eroding returns on capital from an already low base indicate that management’s recent investments are destroying value