Value stocks typically trade at discounts to the broader market, offering patient investors the opportunity to buy businesses when they’re out of favor. The key risk, however, is that these stocks are usually cheap for a reason – five cents for a piece of fruit may seem like a great deal until you find out it’s rotten.

Separating the winners from the value traps is a tough challenge, and that’s where StockStory comes in. Our job is to find you high-quality companies that will stand the test of time. Keeping that in mind, here are three value stocks climbing an uphill battle and some other investments you should look into instead.

Sprinklr (CXM)

Forward P/S Ratio: 2.7x

With a proprietary AI engine processing 450 million data points daily across 30+ digital channels, Sprinklr (NYSE: CXM) provides cloud-based software that helps large enterprises manage customer experiences across social, messaging, chat, and voice channels.

Why Should You Dump CXM?

1. Average billings growth of 4% over the last year was subpar, suggesting it struggled to push its software and might have to lower prices to stimulate demand
2. Estimated sales growth of 3.4% for the next 12 months implies demand will slow from its three-year trend
3. Efficiency has decreased over the last year as its operating margin fell by 3.6 percentage points

At $8.66 per share, Sprinklr trades at 2.7x forward price-to-sales. To fully understand why you should be careful with CXM, check out our full research report (it’s free).

United Parcel Service (UPS)

Forward P/E Ratio: 12x

Trademarking its recognizable UPS Brown color, UPS (NYSE: UPS) offers package delivery, supply chain management, and freight forwarding services.

Why Do We Pass on UPS?

1. Declining unit sales over the past two years show it’s struggled to increase its sales volumes and had to rely on price increases
2. Performance over the past two years shows each sale was less profitable as its earnings per share dropped by 18.4% annually, worse than its revenue
3. Waning returns on capital imply its previous profit engines are losing steam

United Parcel Service’s stock price of $87.79 implies a valuation ratio of 12x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why UPS doesn’t pass our bar.

Acadia Healthcare (ACHC)

Forward P/E Ratio: 8x

With a network of over 250 facilities serving patients in 38 states and Puerto Rico, Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ: ACHC) operates facilities providing mental health and substance use disorder treatment services across the United States.

Why Is ACHC Not Exciting?

1. Underwhelming admissions over the past two years indicate demand is soft and that the company may need to revise its strategy
2. Free cash flow margin dropped by 24.8 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
3. Shrinking returns on capital from an already weak position reveal that neither previous nor ongoing investments are yielding the desired results

Acadia Healthcare is trading at $22.19 per share, or 8x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including ACHC in your portfolio.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

Donald Trump’s April 2025 "Liberation Day" tariffs sent markets into a tailspin, but stocks have since rebounded strongly, proving that knee-jerk reactions often create the best buying opportunities.

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