Growth boosts valuation multiples, but it doesn’t always last forever. Companies that cannot maintain it are often penalized with large declines in market value, a lesson ingrained in investors who lost money in tech stocks during 2022.

Deciphering which businesses can sustain their high growth rates is a challenge for even the most seasoned professionals, which is why we started StockStory. Keeping that in mind, here are two growth stocks with significant upside potential and one that could be down big.

One Growth Stock to Sell:

PAR Technology (PAR)

One-Year Revenue Growth: +37.9%

Originally founded in 1968 as a defense contractor for the U.S. government, PAR Technology (NYSE: PAR) provides cloud-based software, payment processing, and hardware solutions that help restaurants manage everything from point-of-sale to customer loyalty programs.

Why Do We Think Twice About PAR?

1. Efficiency has decreased over the last five years as its adjusted operating margin fell by 6.3 percentage points
2. Negative free cash flow raises questions about the return timeline for its investments
3. Depletion of cash reserves could lead to a fundraising event that triggers shareholder dilution

PAR Technology is trading at $70.51 per share, or 267.4x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why PAR doesn’t pass our bar.

Two Growth Stocks to Buy:

GitLab (GTLB)

One-Year Revenue Growth: +29.3%

Founded as an open-source project in 2011, GitLab (NASDAQ: GTLB) is a leading software development tools platform.

Why Will GTLB Beat the Market?

1. Customers view its software as mission-critical to their operations as its ARR has averaged 31.7% growth over the last year
2. Superior software functionality and low servicing costs lead to a best-in-class gross margin of 88.6%
3. Operating margin improvement of 14.5 percentage points over the last year demonstrates its ability to scale efficiently

At $46.14 per share, GitLab trades at 7.7x forward price-to-sales. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

HEICO (HEI)

One-Year Revenue Growth: +17.7%

Founded in 1957, HEICO (NYSE: HEI) manufactures and services aerospace and electronic components for commercial aviation, defense, space, and other industries.

Why Will HEI Outperform?

1. Core business can prosper without any help from acquisitions as its organic revenue growth averaged 9.7% over the past two years
2. Earnings growth has massively outpaced its peers over the last two years as its EPS has compounded at 25.2% annually
3. Robust free cash flow margin of 17.5% gives it many options for capital deployment

HEICO’s stock price of $319.10 implies a valuation ratio of 68x 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

Donald Trump’s April 2024 "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 6 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. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

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