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5 Stocks With Solid Sales Growth As Markets Touch Record Highs

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Key Takeaways

  • StoneCo, Garmin, Assurant, VICI Properties and Duke Energy show robust 2025 sales growth potential.
  • The screening strategy favors firms with high cash flow, sales growth and efficient cost control.
  • Strong operating margins and ROE highlight companies turning steady sales into durable profits.

Markets opened in 2025 on a strong note but soon encountered heightened volatility. Tariffs and geopolitical uncertainty persist, while the Federal Reserve’s rate cut reflects a cooling labor market and rising inflation from trade policies. The Fed also signaled two additional cuts before the end of the year. Amid these developments, markets are touching record highs, driven by investor optimism. Therefore, picking the right stocks remains challenging for retail investors.

Sales growth provides a more dependable lens for evaluating stocks compared to earnings-focused metrics. Hence, stocks such as StoneCo Ltd. (STNE - Free Report) , Garmin Ltd. (GRMN - Free Report) , Assurant Inc. (AIZ - Free Report) , VICI Properties Inc. (VICI - Free Report) and Duke Energy Corporation (DUK - Free Report) are worth buying.

When assessing a company, sales growth is generally given a preference over earnings. Steady sales growth indicates the actual demand for a company’s products or services. Focusing on sales also offers investors greater visibility into the durability of a company’s business model. The company that can expand its top line during periods of economic stress signals pricing power, competitive advantages and the ability to capture market share.

Meanwhile, earnings can be distorted by one-off charges, cost-cutting, accounting adjustments or temporary margin expansions, making them less indicative of a company’s underlying trajectory. 

Also, constant sales growth often translates into stronger and more predictable cash flows, providing management with the financial flexibility to reinvest in innovation, expand into new markets or return capital to shareholders, all without excessive reliance on debt. Robust cash reserves and steady cash flow provide companies with the flexibility to counter challenges, pursue growth opportunities and maintain operational stability even in uncertain times.

Selecting the Potential Winning Stocks

To shortlist stocks with impressive sales growth and a high cash balance, we have selected 5-Year Historical Sales Growth (%) greater than X-Industry and Cash Flow of more than $500 million as our main screening parameters.

But sales growth and cash strength are not the absolute criteria for selecting stocks. Hence, we have added other factors to arrive at a winning strategy.

P/S Ratio less than X-Industry: This metric determines the value placed on each dollar of a company’s revenues. The lower the ratio, the better it is for picking a stock since the investor is paying less for each unit of sales.

% Change F1 Sales Estimate Revisions (four weeks) greater than X-Industry: Estimate revisions, better than the industry, are often seen to trigger an increase in stock price.

Operating Margin (average last five years) greater than 5%: Operating margin measures how much every dollar of a company's sales translates into profits. A high ratio indicates that the company has good cost control and sales are increasing faster than costs — an optimal situation.

Return on Equity (ROE) greater than 5%: This metric will ensure that sales growth is translated into profits and the company is not hoarding cash. A high ROE means that the company is spending wisely and is in all likelihood profitable.

Zacks Rank less than or equal to 2: Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) stocks are known to outperform, irrespective of the market environment. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

5 Stocks With Robust Sales Growth to Bet on

StoneCo, a Brazilian fintech company, provides payment, digital banking and credit solutions to merchants and partners across in-store, online and mobile channels. STNE’s products are distributed mainly through proprietary and franchised Stone Hubs, offering localized sales and support.

STNE’s expected sales growth rate for 2025 is 9.8%. StoneCo sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present.

Garmin, headquartered in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, designs, develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a range of wireless devices globally. GRMN distributes its products through independent retailers, dealers, distributors, installation and repair shops, and original equipment manufacturers, as well as its online store. 

Garmin’s expected sales growth rate for 2025 is 12.3%. GRMN currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Based in New York, Assurant is a global provider of risk management solutions in the housing and lifestyle markets, protecting where people live and the goods they buy. AIZ reports through two segments: Global Lifestyle and Global Housing.

Assurant’s sales are expected to jump 5.7% in 2025. AIZ carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present.

Based in New York, VICI Properties is an experiential real estate investment trust engaged in the business of owning and acquiring gaming, hospitality and entertainment destinations. VICI’s geographically diverse portfolio comprises approximately 127 million square feet of space, encompassing around 60,300 hotel rooms and more than 500 restaurants, bars, nightclubs and sportsbooks.

VICI Properties’ expected sales growth for 2025 is 4%. VIVI, at present, carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Charlotte, NC-based Duke Energy is a diversified energy company. DUK operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure, and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure. 

Duke Energy’s sales are expected to grow 4.6% in 2025. DUK carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present.

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Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at:
https://www.zacks.com/performance

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