
3 Small-Cap Stocks Skating on Thin Ice

Investors looking for hidden gems should keep an eye on small-cap stocks because they’re frequently overlooked by Wall Street. Many opportunities exist in this part of the market, but it is also a high-risk, high-reward environment due to the lack of reliable analyst price targets.
These trade-offs can cause headaches for even the most seasoned professionals, which is why we started StockStory - to help you separate the good companies from the bad. That said, here are three small-cap stocks to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.
Vishay Intertechnology (VSH)
Market Cap: $1.61 billion
Named after the founder's ancestral village in present-day Lithuania, Vishay Intertechnology (NYSE:VSH) manufactures simple chips and electronic components that are building blocks of virtually all types of electronic devices.
Why Are We Out on VSH?
-
Annual revenue growth of 1.9% over the last five years was below our standards for the semiconductor sector
-
Gross margin of 25.3% is below its competitors, leaving less money to invest in areas like marketing and R&D
-
Capital intensity has ramped up over the last five years as its free cash flow margin decreased by 12.5 percentage points
Vishay Intertechnology’s stock price of $11.88 implies a valuation ratio of 15x forward price-to-earnings. To fully understand why you should be careful with VSH, check out our full research report (it’s free) .
ArcBest (ARCB)
Market Cap: $1.47 billion
Historically owning furniture, banking, and other subsidiaries, ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) offers full-truckload, less-than-truckload, and intermodal deliveries of freight.
Why Do We Pass on ARCB?
-
Flat unit sales over the past two years suggest it might have to lower prices to accelerate growth
-
Earnings per share have contracted by 32.1% annually over the last two years, a headwind for returns as stock prices often echo long-term EPS performance
-
Diminishing returns on capital suggest its earlier profit pools are drying up
ArcBest is trading at $62.03 per share, or 8.4x forward price-to-earnings. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why ARCB doesn’t pass our bar .
Rogers (ROG)
Market Cap: $1.13 billion
With roots dating back to 1832, making it one of America's oldest continuously operating companies, Rogers (NYSE:ROG) designs and manufactures specialized engineered materials and components used in electric vehicles, telecommunications, renewable energy, and other high-performance applications.
Why Is ROG Risky?
-
Products and services are facing significant end-market challenges during this cycle as sales have declined by 1.6% annually over the last five years
-
Performance over the past five years shows each sale was less profitable as its earnings per share dropped by 13.1% annually, worse than its revenue
-
Free cash flow margin shrank by 7 percentage points over the last five years, suggesting the company is consuming more capital to stay competitive