Mid-cap stocks have the best odds of scaling into $100 billion corporations thanks to their tested business models and large addressable markets. But the many opportunities in front of them attract significant competition, spanning from industry behemoths with seemingly infinite resources to small, nimble players with chips on their shoulders.
Luckily for you, our mission at StockStory is to help you make money and avoid losses by sorting the winners from the losers. Keeping that in mind, here are three mid-cap stocks to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.
General Mills (GIS)
Market Cap: $29.64 billion
Best known for its portfolio of powerhouse breakfast cereal brands, General Mills (NYSE: GIS) is a packaged foods company that has also made a mark in cereals, baking products, and snacks.
Why Are We Hesitant About GIS?
- Shrinking unit sales over the past two years show it’s struggled to move its products and had to rely on price increases
- Core business is underperforming as its organic revenue has disappointed over the past two years, suggesting it might need acquisitions to stimulate growth
- Projected sales decline of 4.3% for the next 12 months points to a tough demand environment ahead
General Mills is trading at $54.19 per share, or 12.8x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with GIS, check out our full research report (it’s free).
Masco (MAS)
Market Cap: $12.94 billion
Headquartered just outside of Detroit, MI, Masco (NYSE: MAS) designs and manufactures home-building products such as glass shower doors, decorative lighting, bathtubs, and faucets.
Why Do We Think MAS Will Underperform?
- Core business is underperforming as its organic revenue has disappointed over the past two years, suggesting it might need acquisitions to stimulate growth
- Estimated sales for the next 12 months are flat and imply a softer demand environment
- Shrinking returns on capital suggest that increasing competition is eating into the company’s profitability
Masco’s stock price of $61.33 implies a valuation ratio of 14.1x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including MAS in your portfolio.
Flex (FLEX)
Market Cap: $15.82 billion
Originally known as Flextronics until its 2016 rebranding, Flex (NASDAQ: FLEX) is a global manufacturing partner that designs, engineers, and builds products for companies across industries from medical devices to solar trackers.
Why Do We Avoid FLEX?
- Sales tumbled by 4.8% annually over the last two years, showing market trends are working against its favor during this cycle
- Projected sales for the next 12 months are flat and suggest demand will be subdued
- Ability to fund investments or reward shareholders with increased buybacks or dividends is restricted by its weak free cash flow margin of 1.9% for the last five years
At $42.52 per share, Flex trades at 15x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than FLEX.
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 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-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.
