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 with Questionable Fundamentals

PANW Cover Image

While strong cash flow is a key indicator of stability, it doesn’t always translate to superior returns. Some cash-heavy businesses struggle with inefficient spending, slowing demand, or weak competitive positioning.

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.

Palo Alto Networks (PANW)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 33.8%

Founded in 2005 by cybersecurity engineer Nir Zuk, Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) makes hardware and software cybersecurity products that protect companies from cyberattacks, breaches, and malware threats.

Why Do We Think Twice About PANW?

  1. Sales trends were unexciting over the last three years as its 19.7% annual growth was below the typical software company
  2. Customers had second thoughts about committing to its platform over the last year as its average billings growth of 3% underwhelmed

Palo Alto Networks is trading at $197.10 per share, or 13.8x forward price-to-sales. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why PANW doesn’t pass our bar.

Walmart (WMT)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 2%

Known for its large-format Supercenters, Walmart (NYSE: WMT) is a retail pioneer that serves a budget-conscious consumer who is looking for a wide range of products under one roof.

Why Does WMT Fall Short?

  1. Sizable revenue base leads to growth challenges as its 4.8% annual revenue increases over the last six years fell short of other consumer retail companies
  2. Gross margin of 24.7% is an output of its commoditized inventory
  3. Incremental sales over the last six years were much less profitable as its earnings per share fell by 10.9% annually while its revenue grew

At $97.70 per share, Walmart trades at 36.5x forward P/E. If you’re considering WMT for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Albany (AIN)

Trailing 12-Month Free Cash Flow Margin: 11.8%

Founded in 1895, Albany (NYSE: AIN) is a global textiles and materials processing company, specializing in machine clothing for paper mills and engineered composite structures for aerospace and other industries.

Why Are We Out on AIN?

  1. Sales trends were unexciting over the last five years as its 3% annual growth was below the typical industrials company
  2. Efficiency has decreased over the last five years as its operating margin fell by 9 percentage points
  3. Earnings per share fell by 6.3% annually over the last five years while its revenue grew, showing its incremental sales were much less profitable

Albany’s stock price of $71.87 implies a valuation ratio of 11.5x forward EV-to-EBITDA. To fully understand why you should be careful with AIN, check out our full research report (it’s free).

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

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 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 Tecnoglass (+1,754% 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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