While the S&P 500 is up 24.7% since April 2025, Nasdaq (currently trading at $87.45 per share) has lagged behind, posting a return of 18.5%. This might have investors contemplating their next move.
Is now the time to buy Nasdaq, or should you be careful about including it in your portfolio? Get the full breakdown from our expert analysts, it’s free.
Why Is Nasdaq Not Exciting?
We don't have much confidence in Nasdaq. Here is one reason we avoid NDAQ and a stock we'd rather own.
Recent EPS Growth Below Our Standards
While long-term earnings trends give us the big picture, we also track EPS over a shorter period because it can provide insight into an emerging theme or development for the business.
Nasdaq’s EPS grew at an unimpressive 7.4% compounded annual growth rate over the last two years, lower than its 16.7% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became less profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.
Final Judgment
Nasdaq isn’t a terrible business, but it isn’t one of our picks. With its shares underperforming the market lately, the stock trades at 25.4× forward P/E (or $87.45 per share). This valuation tells us a lot of optimism is priced in - you can find more timely opportunities elsewhere. We’d recommend looking at an all-weather company that owns household favorite Taco Bell.
Stocks We Like More Than Nasdaq
Donald Trump’s April 2025 "Liberation Day" tariffs sent markets into a tailspin, but stocks have since rebounded strongly, proving that knee-jerk reactions often create the best buying opportunities.
The smart money is already positioning for the next leg up. Don’t miss out on the recovery - check out our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).
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-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
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