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.

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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

1 Momentum Stock to Target This Week and 2 We Ignore

DASH Cover Image

The stocks in this article are all trading near their 52-week highs. This strength often reflects positive developments such as new product launches, favorable industry trends, or improved financial performance.

However, not all companies with momentum are long-term winners, and many investors have lost money by following short-term trends. Keeping that in mind, here is one stock we think lives up to the hype and two not so much.

Two Stocks to Sell:

Bel Fuse (BELFA)

One-Month Return: +5.3%

Founded by 26-year-old Elliot Bernstein during the electronics boom after WW2, Bel Fuse (NASDAQ: BELF.A) provides electronic systems and devices to the telecommunications, networking, transportation, and industrial sectors.

Why Are We Hesitant About BELFA?

  1. Customers postponed purchases of its products and services this cycle as its revenue declined by 7.1% annually over the last two years
  2. Earnings per share have contracted by 16.2% annually over the last two years, a headwind for returns as stock prices often echo long-term EPS performance

At $118.22 per share, Bel Fuse trades at 12.1x forward EV-to-EBITDA. If you’re considering BELFA for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Stifel (SF)

One-Month Return: +1%

Tracing its roots back to 1890 when the firm was established in St. Louis, Stifel Financial (NYSE: SF) is a financial services firm that provides wealth management, investment banking, and institutional brokerage services to individuals, corporations, and institutions.

Why Is SF Not Exciting?

  1. Annual revenue growth of 7.5% over the last five years was below our standards for the financials sector
  2. Annual earnings per share growth of 4.1% underperformed its revenue over the last two years, showing its incremental sales were less profitable
  3. 4% annual book value per share growth over the last two years was slower than its financials peers

Stifel’s stock price of $115.29 implies a valuation ratio of 13.8x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including SF in your portfolio.

One Stock to Buy:

DoorDash (DASH)

One-Month Return: +4.2%

Founded by Stanford students with the intent to build “the local, on-demand FedEx", DoorDash (NYSE: DASH) operates an on-demand food delivery platform.

Why Do We Love DASH?

  1. Orders have increased by an average of 20.3% annually, giving it the potential for margin-accretive growth if it can develop valuable complementary products and features
  2. Incremental sales significantly boosted profitability as its annual earnings per share growth of 111% over the last three years outstripped its revenue performance
  3. Free cash flow margin grew by 11.9 percentage points over the last few years, giving the company more chips to play with

DoorDash is trading at $258.40 per share, or 35.9x forward EV/EBITDA. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

When Trump unveiled his aggressive tariff plan in April 2025, markets tanked as investors feared a full-blown trade war. But those who panicked and sold missed the subsequent rebound that’s already erased most losses.

Don’t let fear keep you from great opportunities and take a look at 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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