The broader equity markets continued to trade in record territory after a minor blip mid-week. The uptrend was buoyed by relatively modest job market conditions, with the December jobs report revealing that nonfarm payrolls increased by 50,000 last month. Although the tally was lower than the consensus estimate of 73,000 job additions, it showed that the U.S. economy was in good shape. The unemployment rate was 4.4%, lower than the forecast of 4.5%, which further corroborated the improving economic health. 

Although the better-than-expected metrics fueled optimism regarding interest rate cuts in 2026, latent tensions related to escalated tariffs persisted. As investors employ a wait-and-see approach in a classic example of “backing and filling” in the market, they can benefit from “cash cow” stocks that garner higher returns. However, identifying cash-rich stocks alone does not make for a solid investment proposition unless it is backed by attractive efficiency ratios, such as return on equity (ROE). A high ROE ensures that the company is reinvesting cash at a high rate of return. Arista Networks, Inc. (ANET Quick QuoteANET - Free Report) , Corning Incorporated (GLW Quick QuoteGLW - Free Report) , Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA Quick QuoteBBVA - Free Report) , Assurant, Inc. (AIZ Quick QuoteAIZ - Free Report) and Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (HST Quick QuoteHST - Free Report) are some of the stocks with high ROE to profit from.

ROE: A Key Metric

ROE = Net Income/Shareholders’ Equity

ROE helps investors distinguish profit-generating companies from profit burners and is useful in determining the financial health of a company. In other words, this financial metric enables investors to identify companies that diligently deploy cash for higher returns.

Moreover, ROE is often used to compare the profitability of a company with other firms in the industry; the higher, the better. It measures how well a company is multiplying its profits without investing new equity capital and portrays management’s efficiency in rewarding shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns.

Screening Parameters  

In order to shortlist stocks that are cash-rich with high ROE, we have added Cash Flow greater than $1 billion and ROE greater than X-Industry as our primary screening parameters. In addition, we have taken a few other criteria into consideration to arrive at a winning strategy.

Price/Cash Flow lesser than X-Industry: This metric measures how much investors pay for $1 of free cash flow. A lower ratio indicates that investors need to pay less for a better cash flow-generating stock.

Return on Assets (ROA) greater than X-Industry: This metric determines how much profit a company earns for every dollar of assets, which includes cash, accounts receivable, property, equipment, inventory and furniture. The higher the ROA, the better it is for the company.

5-Year EPS Historical Growth greater than X-Industry: This criterion indicates that continued earnings momentum has translated into solid cash strength.   

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.

Here are five of the 24 stocks that qualified the screening:

Arista: Santa Clara, CA-based Arista is engaged in providing cloud networking solutions for data centers and cloud computing environments. The company holds a leadership position in 100-gigabit Ethernet switching for the high-speed datacenter segment. It is increasingly gaining market traction in 200- and 400-gig high-performance switching products and remains well-positioned for healthy growth in the data-driven cloud networking business with proactive platforms and predictive operations. 

The company has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 20.1%. It delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 10.2%, on average. Arista carries a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. 

Corning: New York-based Corning started out as a glass business that was reincorporated in 1936. The company has since developed its glass technologies to produce advanced glass substrates used in a wide range of applications across various markets. Corning’s competitive strength lies in its focus on innovation. 

The company has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 18.2%. It delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 4.1%, on average. Corning carries a Zacks Rank #2. 

Banco Bilbao: Headquartered in Bilbao, Spain, Banco Bilbao provides retail banking, wholesale banking and asset management services primarily in Spain, Mexico, Turkey, the Rest of Europe, South America, the United States and Asia.

The company has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 12% and delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 5.7%, on average. Banco Bilbao carries a Zacks Rank #2. It has a VGM Score of B.  

Assurant: Headquartered 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. The company operates in North America, Latin America, Europe and the Asia Pacific.

It delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 22.7%, on average. Assurant carries a Zacks Rank #2. It has a VGM Score of A.

Host Hotels: Bethesda, MD-based Host Hotels, one of the leading lodging real estate investment trusts (REITs), engages in the ownership, acquisition and redevelopment of luxury and upper-upscale hotels in the United States and abroad. Its properties are positioned mainly in growing markets in the United States and globally and include premium brands, such as Marriott, Westin, Ritz-Carlton, Hyatt, Sheraton, W, St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, Fairmont, Four Seasons, Swissôtel, ibis, 1 Hotels, Novotel and Hilton. 

Host Hotels delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 11%, on average. Host Hotels carries a Zacks Rank #2.