Large-cap stocks have the power to shape entire industries thanks to their size and widespread influence. With such vast footprints, however, finding new areas for growth is much harder than for smaller, more agile players.
This dynamic can trouble even the most skilled investors, but luckily for you, we started StockStory to help you navigate these trade-offs and uncover exceptional companies that break the mold. Keeping that in mind, here is one large-cap stock with attractive long-term potential and two whose momentum may slow.
Two Large-Cap Stocks to Sell:
Live Nation (LYV)
Market Cap: $35.47 billion
Owner of Ticketmaster and operator of music festival EDC, Live Nation (NYSE: LYV) is a company specializing in live event promotion, venue management, and ticketing services for concerts and shows.
Why Does LYV Fall Short?
- Sluggish trends in its events suggest customers aren’t adopting its solutions as quickly as the company hoped
- Operating margin of 4.1% falls short of the industry average, and the smaller profit dollars make it harder to react to unexpected market developments
- Projected 1.9 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin next year reflects the company’s plans to increase its investments to defend its market position
Live Nation’s stock price of $152.39 implies a valuation ratio of 65.2x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including LYV in your portfolio.
Verizon (VZ)
Market Cap: $181.6 billion
Formed in 1984 as Bell Atlantic after the breakup of Bell System into seven companies, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) is a telecom giant providing a range of communications and internet services.
Why Do We Pass on VZ?
- Weak customer trends over the past two years suggest it may need to improve its products, pricing, or go-to-market strategy
- Estimated sales growth of 2.1% for the next 12 months is soft and implies weaker demand
- Free cash flow margin is forecasted to shrink by 1.8 percentage points in the coming year, suggesting the company will consume more capital to keep up with its competitors
Verizon is trading at $43.07 per share, or 9.1x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than VZ.
One Large-Cap Stock to Watch:
Ross Stores (ROST)
Market Cap: $45.24 billion
Selling excess inventory or overstocked items from other retailers, Ross Stores (NASDAQ: ROST) is an off-price concept that sells apparel and other goods at prices much lower than department stores.
Why Do We Like ROST?
- Rapid rollout of new stores to capitalize on market opportunities makes sense given its strong same-store sales performance
- Same-store sales growth averaged 3.5% over the past two years, showing it’s bringing new and repeat shoppers into its stores
- Market-beating returns on capital illustrate that management has a knack for investing in profitable ventures, and its returns are climbing as it finds even more attractive growth opportunities
At $138.21 per share, Ross Stores trades at 21x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free.
High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions
Trump’s April 2025 tariff bombshell triggered a massive market selloff, but stocks have since staged an impressive recovery, leaving those who panic sold on the sidelines.
Take advantage of the rebound by checking out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. 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 Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.
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