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. That said, here are three mid-cap stocks to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.

Lincoln Electric (LECO)

Market Cap: $12.44 billion

Headquartered in Ohio, Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ: LECO) manufactures and sells welding equipment for various industries.

Why Is LECO Not Exciting?

1. Core business is underperforming as its organic revenue has disappointed over the past two years, suggesting it might need acquisitions to stimulate growth
2. Estimated sales growth of 2.1% for the next 12 months is soft and implies weaker demand
3. Earnings growth over the last two years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 5.4% annually

Lincoln Electric is trading at $221.45 per share, or 23.6x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including LECO in your portfolio.

AECOM (ACM)

Market Cap: $15.11 billion

Founded in 1990 when a group of engineers from five companies decided to merge, AECOM (NYSE: ACM) provides various infrastructure consulting services.

Why Does ACM Worry Us?

1. Demand cratered as it couldn’t win new orders over the past two years, leading to an average 1.6% decline in its backlog
2. High input costs result in an inferior gross margin of 6.4% that must be offset through higher volumes
3. Operating margin of 4.3% falls short of the industry average, and the smaller profit dollars make it harder to react to unexpected market developments

At $116.72 per share, AECOM trades at 22.3x forward P/E. If you’re considering ACM for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

TransUnion (TRU)

Market Cap: $17.77 billion

One of the three major credit bureaus in the United States alongside Equifax and Experian, TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) is a global information and insights company that provides credit reports, fraud prevention tools, and data analytics to help businesses make decisions and consumers manage their financial health.

Why Do We Think Twice About TRU?

1. 10.1 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin over the last five years reflects the company’s increased investments to defend its market position
2. Underwhelming 6% return on capital reflects management’s difficulties in finding profitable growth opportunities, and its shrinking returns suggest its past profit sources are losing steam
3. Shrinking returns on capital from an already weak position reveal that neither previous nor ongoing investments are yielding the desired results

TransUnion’s stock price of $91.06 implies a valuation ratio of 21.6x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with TRU, check out our full research report (it’s free).

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 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-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

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