Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

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Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

3 Cash-Producing Stocks We Find Risky

PEP Cover Image

A company that generates cash isn’t automatically a winner. Some businesses stockpile cash but fail to reinvest wisely, limiting their ability to expand.

Luckily for you, we built StockStory to help you separate the good from the bad. Keeping that in mind, here are three cash-producing companies that don’t make the cut and some better opportunities instead.

PepsiCo (PEP)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 8.1%

With a history that goes back more than a century, PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) is a household name in food and beverages today and best known for its flagship soda.

Why Does PEP Give Us Pause?

  1. Shrinking unit sales over the past two years imply it may need to invest in product improvements to get back on track
  2. Estimated sales growth of 3.2% for the next 12 months is soft and implies weaker demand
  3. Expenses have increased as a percentage of revenue over the last year as its operating margin fell by 2.1 percentage points

PepsiCo is trading at $145.24 per share, or 18x forward P/E. If you’re considering PEP for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Kontoor Brands (KTB)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 14.3%

Founded in 2019 after separating from VF Corporation, Kontoor Brands (NYSE: KTB) is a clothing company known for its high-quality denim products.

Why Are We Wary of KTB?

  1. Products and services fail to spark excitement with consumers, as seen in its flat sales over the last two years
  2. Constant currency revenue growth has disappointed over the past two years and shows demand was soft
  3. Earnings growth over the last five years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 9.4% annually

At $64.87 per share, Kontoor Brands trades at 13.3x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why KTB doesn’t pass our bar.

Playa Hotels & Resorts (PLYA)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 2.7%

Sporting a roster of beachfront properties, Playa Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ: PLYA) is an owner, operator, and developer of all-inclusive resorts in prime vacation destinations.

Why Is PLYA Not Exciting?

  1. Weak revenue per room over the past two years indicates challenges in maintaining pricing power and occupancy rates
  2. Projected sales growth of 7.6% for the next 12 months suggests sluggish demand
  3. Low returns on capital reflect management’s struggle to allocate funds effectively

Playa Hotels & Resorts’s stock price of $13.48 implies a valuation ratio of 21.7x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with PLYA, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Stocks We Like More

Trump’s April 2024 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 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-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% 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

StockStory is growing and hiring equity analyst and marketing roles. Are you a 0 to 1 builder passionate about the markets and AI? See the open roles here.

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