When Wall Street turns bearish on a stock, it’s worth paying attention. These calls stand out because analysts rarely issue grim ratings on companies for fear their firms will lose out in other business lines such as M&A advisory.
Whatever the consensus opinion may be, our team at StockStory cuts through the noise by conducting independent analysis to determine a company’s long-term prospects. Keeping that in mind, here are three stocks where the outlook is warranted and some alternatives with better fundamentals.
Kforce (KFRC)
Consensus Price Target: $60.67 (7.8% implied return)
With nearly 60 years of matching skilled professionals with the right opportunities, Kforce (NYSE: KFRC) is a professional staffing company that specializes in placing technology and finance experts with businesses on both temporary and permanent bases.
Why Do We Pass on KFRC?
- Sales tumbled by 2% annually over the last five years, showing market trends are working against it during this cycle
- Sales were less profitable over the last five years as its earnings per share fell by 8.9% annually, worse than its revenue declines
- Shrinking returns on capital suggest that increasing competition is eating into the company’s profitability
At $56.26 per share, Kforce trades at 21.3x forward P/E. If you’re considering KFRC for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.
Payoneer (PAYO)
Consensus Price Target: $7.85 (9.6% implied return)
Founded during the early days of global e-commerce in 2005 to solve international payment challenges, Payoneer (NASDAQ: PAYO) provides financial technology services that enable small and medium-sized businesses to send and receive payments globally across borders.
Why Does PAYO Give Us Pause?
- Annual earnings per share growth of 4.8% underperformed its revenue over the last two years, showing its incremental sales were less profitable
- Underwhelming 7.3% return on equity reflects management’s difficulties in finding profitable growth opportunities
Payoneer’s stock price of $7.16 implies a valuation ratio of 25.2x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why PAYO doesn’t pass our bar.
F.N.B. Corporation (FNB)
Consensus Price Target: $20.94 (10.3% implied return)
Tracing its roots back to 1864 during the Civil War era, F.N.B. Corporation (NYSE: FNB) is a diversified financial services holding company that provides banking, wealth management, and insurance services to consumers and businesses across seven states and Washington, D.C.
Why Are We Cautious About FNB?
- Muted 9.7% annual net interest income growth over the last five years shows its demand lagged behind its banking peers
- Inferior net interest margin of 3.2% means it must compensate for lower profitability through increased loan originations
- Earnings growth over the last two years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 8.2% annually
F.N.B. Corporation is trading at $18.99 per share, or 0.9x forward P/B. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than FNB.
Stocks We Like More
ONE MORE THING: Top 5 Growth Stocks. The biggest stock winners almost always had one thing in common before they ran. Revenue growing like crazy. Meta. CrowdStrike. Broadcom. Our AI flagged all three. They returned 315%, 314%, and 455%, respectively.
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Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,460% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+271% between June 2020 and June 2025). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
