Exciting developments are taking place for the stocks in this article. They’ve all surged ahead of the broader market over the last month as catalysts such as new products and positive media coverage have propelled their returns.
But not every company with momentum is a long-term winner, and plenty of investors have lost money betting on short-term fads. Keeping that in mind, here are two stocks with the fundamentals to back up their performance and one best left ignored.
One Momentum Stock to Sell:
Akamai (AKAM)
One-Month Return: +0.2%
With a massive distributed network spanning 4,100+ points of presence in nearly 130 countries, Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM) provides a global distributed cloud platform that helps businesses deliver, secure, and optimize their digital experiences online.
Why Are We Out on AKAM?
- Customers had second thoughts about committing to its platform over the last year as its average billings growth of 6.8% underwhelmed
- Bad unit economics and steep infrastructure costs are reflected in its gross margin of 58.3%, one of the worst among software companies
- Capital intensity will likely increase as its free cash flow margin is anticipated to drop by 25.3 percentage points over the next year
At $148 per share, Akamai trades at 5.2x forward price-to-sales. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than AKAM.
Two Momentum Stocks to Watch:
ServiceNow (NOW)
One-Month Return: +21.6%
Built on a single code base that processes more than 80 billion workflows and 6.5 trillion transactions annually, ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW) provides a cloud-based platform that helps organizations automate and digitize workflows across departments, from IT and HR to customer service and security.
Why Do We Love NOW?
- Customers view its software as mission-critical to their operations as its ARR has averaged 21.8% growth over the last year
- Well-designed software integrates seamlessly with other workflows, enabling swift payback periods on marketing expenses and customer growth at scale
- Strong free cash flow margin of 34.6% enables it to reinvest or return capital consistently
ServiceNow is trading at $110.90 per share, or 7.3x forward price-to-sales. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free.
Marvell Technology (MRVL)
One-Month Return: +60.4%
Moving away from a low margin storage device management chips in one of the biggest semiconductor business model pivots of the past decade, Marvell Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL) is a fabless designer of special purpose data processing and networking chips used by data centers, communications carriers, enterprises, and autos.
Why Does MRVL Stand Out?
- Market share has increased this cycle as its 22.9% annual revenue growth over the last five years was exceptional
- Market share is on track to rise over the next 12 months as its 45.5% projected revenue growth implies demand will accelerate from its two-year trend
- Operating margin improvement of 19.8 percentage points over the last five years demonstrates its ability to scale efficiently
Marvell Technology’s stock price of $272.89 implies a valuation ratio of 69.8x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions
WHILE YOU’RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don’t just beat the market once. They do it again. And again. Robust revenue growth, rising free cash flow, returns on capital that leave their competition in the dust. The market has already rewarded these businesses.
But our AI platform says the party isn’t over. Find out which 9 stocks made the cut this week — FREE. Get Our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks for Free HERE.
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 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.
