Growth is oxygen. But when it evaporates, the consequences can be severe - ask anyone who bought Cisco in the Dot-Com Bubble or newer investors who lived through the 2020 to 2022 COVID cycle.
Luckily for you, our job at StockStory is to help you avoid short-term fads by pointing you toward high-quality businesses that can generate sustainable long-term growth. Keeping that in mind, here is one growth stock with significant upside potential and two whose momentum may slow.
Two Growth Stocks to Sell:
BrightSpring Health Services (BTSG)
One-Year Revenue Growth: +28.1%
Founded in 1974, BrightSpring Health Services (NASDAQ: BTSG) offers home health care, hospice, neuro-rehabilitation, and pharmacy services.
Why Are We Cautious About BTSG?
- Day-to-day expenses have swelled relative to revenue over the last five years as its adjusted operating margin fell by 2.4 percentage points
- Earnings per share have contracted by 49.3% annually over the last four years, a headwind for returns as stock prices often echo long-term EPS performance
- Capital intensity has ramped up over the last five years as its free cash flow margin decreased by 5.3 percentage points
BrightSpring Health Services’s stock price of $32.80 implies a valuation ratio of 30.3x forward P/E. If you’re considering BTSG for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.
Lincoln Financial Group (LNC)
One-Year Revenue Growth: +18.4%
Founded in 1905 by a group of Fort Wayne, Indiana businessmen who named the company after Abraham Lincoln, Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE: LNC) provides insurance, retirement plans, and wealth management products through its subsidiaries, operating under four main segments: Annuities, Life Insurance, Group Protection, and Retirement Plan Services.
Why Should You Sell LNC?
- Insurance offerings faced market headwinds this cycle, reflected in stagnant net premiums earned over the last two years
- Flat earnings per share over the last five years lagged its peers
- Book value per share tumbled by 15.9% annually over the last five years, showing insurance sector trends are working against its favor during this cycle
At $39.35 per share, Lincoln Financial Group trades at 0.9x forward P/B. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than LNC.
One Growth Stock to Buy:
The Bancorp (TBBK)
One-Year Revenue Growth: +30.6%
Operating behind the scenes of many popular fintech apps and prepaid cards you might use daily, The Bancorp (NASDAQ: TBBK) is a bank holding company that specializes in providing banking services to fintech companies and offering specialty lending products.
Why Should You Buy TBBK?
- Impressive 15.2% annual net interest income growth over the last five years indicates it’s winning market share this cycle
- Differentiated product suite results in a Strong performance of its loan book is reflected in its High-yielding loan book and low cost of funds are reflected in its best-in-class net interest margin of 4.7%
- Performance over the past two years was turbocharged by share buybacks, which enabled its earnings per share to grow faster than its revenue
The Bancorp is trading at $75.50 per share, or 4.7x forward P/B. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free for active Edge members.
Stocks We Like Even More
Trump’s April 2025 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 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-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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