The Long-Term Investor's Blueprint

The Business

Ross Stores operates as an off-price retailer, selling brand-name apparel and home goods at deep discounts by buying excess inventory from other retailers and manufacturers. It makes money by keeping costs low and passing savings to customers, driving high traffic and volume.

Focus

The stock's high rank is driven by strong quality (z-score +1.98) and momentum (z-score +1.64), reflecting solid profit margins and recent price outperformance relative to peers.

Caution

Despite a high Piotroski F-Score of 6, insider selling dwarfs buying—84,225 shares sold vs. 43,939 bought over six months—suggesting insiders see limited upside. While analysts are bullish (19 buys, 0 sells), the composite quant score is a dismal 0.8/10, and the value z-score is nearly zero (+0.01), meaning the stock is not cheap by traditional metrics, posing downside if earnings estimates miss.

COMPOSITE: 0.8 (Rank #1, top 97%)

The Business

Apple designs and sells smartphones, computers, wearables, and digital services like the App Store and iCloud, generating most of its revenue from iPhone sales.

Focus

The stock's high rank is driven entirely by a stellar quality score (z-score +3.00) and strong investment growth (z-score +1.18), meaning the company is very profitable and reinvesting heavily, even though its value and momentum scores are middling or negative.

Caution

Insider selling is 27 sells vs. just 3 buys in the last six months, totaling almost 584,000 shares dumped compared to only 77,000 bought, signaling that executives are cashing out at current levels; meanwhile, Apple faces a specific lawmaker push to block its sourcing of memory chips from China's CXMT, which could disrupt its supply chain and raise costs.

COMPOSITE: 0.7 (Rank #2, top 93%)

The Business

MO (MO) operates in the Consumer Defensive sector. Gross profitability of 0.4%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.7. Momentum: neutral (-0.23), 6M Mom: neutral (+0.42), Volatility: neutral (-0.35), Quality: strong (+2.05), Value: strong (+0.77), Accruals: strong (+1.34), Inv Growth: strong (+1.03).

Caution

No major red flags, but always verify with independent research.

COMPOSITE: 0.7 (Rank #3, top 90%)

The Business

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) operates in the Technology sector. Gross profitability of 0.3%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.7. Momentum: strong (+1.88), 6M Mom: strong (+2.86), Volatility: weak (-1.73), Quality: strong (+1.19), Value: neutral (-0.02), Accruals: neutral (+0.15), Inv Growth: strong (+1.20).

Caution

Volatility concerning at -1.73 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.7 (Rank #4, top 87%)

The Business

Suncor Energy is an integrated energy company that extracts oil from Canada's oil sands, refines it into fuels like gasoline and diesel, and sells those products at its Petro-Canada retail stations. The company makes money by producing crude oil at low costs and capturing additional profit from refining and selling the finished products to consumers.

Focus

The high quant rank is driven by strong value (z-score +1.23) and exceptionally positive accruals (z-score +1.67), meaning the company's earnings are backed by actual cash flow rather than accounting adjustments. The Piotroski F-Score of 7 confirms solid financial strength with improving profitability, leverage, and operating efficiency.

Caution

Despite 22 analyst buys, the stock has already surged 323%, and recent headlines from Yahoo explicitly question whether that run is now 'priced in' after Suncor hit efficiency targets early. Furthermore, the company faces execution risk from Alberta's proposed West Coast pipeline incentives, which depend on filling new capacity that may not materialize if global oil demand softens.

COMPOSITE: 0.5 (Rank #5, top 83%)

The Business

Monster Beverage Corporation produces and sells energy drinks and related beverages, generating revenue primarily from sales to distributors, retailers, and hospitality customers globally.

Focus

The high Quality z-score (+2.42) reflects strong profitability and efficient operations, while the slightly positive Momentum and 6M Momentum z-scores (+0.89 and +0.98) indicate recent price outperformance relative to the market.

Caution

The overwhelming insider selling—13 sales totaling over 2 million shares versus only 76,684 shares bought in the last six months—signals that executives and directors are cashing out heavily, and the proposed U.K. ban on high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16 directly threatens a key growth demographic for the company, even as UBS maintains a Neutral rating with a $104 price target.

COMPOSITE: 0.5 (Rank #6, top 80%)

The Business

State Street Corporation provides financial services to institutional investors, including asset management and custodial services, and generates revenue primarily from fees for administering trillions of dollars in assets and from ETF management and servicing fees.

Focus

The high quant rank is driven by a strong value factor (z-score +3.00) and momentum, particularly over the last six months (z-score +2.00), indicating the stock is cheap relative to fundamentals and has been rallying recently.

Caution

Despite analyst optimism (14 buys, 0 sells), insider activity shows 14 sells totaling 93,968 shares versus only 38,606 shares bought, and a recent Yahoo article explicitly warns to 'avoid State Street’s heavy ETF pricing pressure' — management on the Q2 2026 earnings call noted record revenue but did not address the competitive pricing threat highlighted by analysts, which could squeeze margins going forward.

COMPOSITE: 0.5 (Rank #7, top 77%)

The Business

HST (HST) operates in the Real Estate sector. Gross profitability of 0.0%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.4. Momentum: strong (+1.57), 6M Mom: strong (+1.71), Volatility: neutral (-0.48), Quality: weak (-0.90), Value: strong (+1.37), Accruals: strong (+1.00), Inv Growth: strong (+0.97).

Caution

Quality concerning at -0.90 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #8, top 73%)

The Business

Alphabet Inc. generates most of its revenue from digital advertising on Google Search and YouTube, with additional income from cloud computing and subscription services.

Focus

The high rank is driven by strong momentum (z-score +3.00) and solid quality (z-score +1.30), reflecting recent price gains and healthy profitability despite weak investment growth (z-score -3.00).

Caution

Earnings are in 5 days on July 22, 2026, and the stock could gap significantly; the AI sell-off highlighted in recent news, including a drop in Netflix and Microsoft, poses a sector-wide risk that Alphabet may face margin pressure or guidance cuts on the call, especially given its negative investment growth factor.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #9, top 70%)

The Business

Alphabet Inc. operates Google, its search and advertising business, which generates the vast majority of its revenue by selling ads that appear alongside search results, on YouTube, and across partner websites, plus it runs the Android operating system and cloud services like Google Cloud.

Focus

The high rank is driven primarily by a strong momentum factor (z-score +3.00, meaning the stock has recently outperformed) and a solid quality factor (z-score +1.30, indicating strong profitability and low debt), though these are partially offset by extremely poor investment growth (z-score -3.00, suggesting slowing capital spending).

Caution

Earnings are in 5 days on July 22, 2026, and the stock could gap sharply on the print; despite 60 analyst buy ratings, the sharp 6-month momentum decline (z-score -1.16) and high volatility (z-score -1.45) signal that AI sector sell-offs—like the one discussed in the Dow Jones Futures article—could hit Alphabet hard, especially if management reveals any pressure on ad spending or cloud margins, but the context lacks a specific management quote on margin pressures to cite.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #10, top 67%)

The Business

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW) operates in the Industrials sector. Gross profitability of 0.5%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.4. Momentum: weak (-1.17), 6M Mom: weak (-0.70), Volatility: neutral (+0.17), Quality: strong (+2.88), Value: neutral (+0.01), Accruals: weak (-0.86), Inv Growth: neutral (+0.03).

Caution

Momentum concerning at -1.17 z-score; 6M Mom concerning at -0.70 z-score; Accruals concerning at -0.86 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #11, top 63%)

The Business

Rockwell Automation sells industrial automation hardware and software, like programmable logic controllers and factory management systems, to manufacturers and utilities, making money through equipment sales and recurring service contracts.

Focus

The high Quality (+1.62) and Accruals (+1.10) z-scores are driving the composite rank, meaning the company shows strong profitability and low reliance on non-cash accounting adjustments, while the poor Volatility score (-1.48) drags it down.

Caution

Despite the strong Piotroski F-Score of 8, a SeekingAlpha analysis explicitly calls out 'value-destructive buybacks' as a risk, and the heavy insider selling (20 sells vs 10 buys, with over double the shares sold in the last six months) signals that executives see the stock as overvalued, even as 17 analysts rate it a buy.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #12, top 60%)

The Business

ADM processes agricultural commodities like corn, soybeans, and wheat into food ingredients, animal feed, and biofuels, making money by selling these products globally and earning margins on the spread between raw material costs and finished good prices.

Focus

The high quant rank is driven by strong value (z-score +1.39) and exceptional accruals (z-score +1.91), meaning the stock is cheap relative to earnings and cash flow, and reported earnings are backed by actual cash rather than accounting adjustments.

Caution

Despite insider buying, 7 out of 19 analysts rate the stock a sell, and the SeekingAlpha headline flags that ADM still looks priced at a premium after a 63% five-year run—management has not cited margin pressure in recent transcripts, but the heavy sell-side skepticism suggests the market may already be pricing in a slowdown in agricultural commodity demand.

COMPOSITE: 0.4 (Rank #13, top 57%)

The Business

General Dynamics Corporation (GD) operates in the Industrials sector. Gross profitability of 0.5%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.3. Momentum: weak (-0.59), 6M Mom: weak (-1.50), Volatility: neutral (-0.10), Quality: strong (+2.49), Value: neutral (+0.17), Accruals: neutral (-0.44), Inv Growth: strong (+0.65).

Caution

Momentum concerning at -0.59 z-score; 6M Mom concerning at -1.50 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.3 (Rank #14, top 53%)

The Business

Kimco Realty is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and operates open-air shopping centers, primarily anchored by grocery stores, and makes money by collecting rent from tenants like supermarkets, discount retailers, and restaurants.

Focus

The stock's composite quant score is extremely low (0.2/10), but the positive z-scores for 6-month momentum (+1.02) and investment growth (+1.37) indicate recent price strength and expanding capital spending are the main factors keeping it from being a complete zero.

Caution

With earnings expected within a week (the Yahoo preview dated July 1, 2026), the risk is that Kimco's high 6.5% preferred yield signals underlying stress in the common dividend—and despite the 14 buy ratings, the insider selling of 99,613 shares in the last six months, combined with heavy insider buying, suggests mixed convictions about the stock's near-term outlook.

COMPOSITE: 0.2 (Rank #15, top 50%)

The Business

Norfolk Southern operates a major freight railroad in the eastern United States, moving goods like coal, chemicals, and intermodal containers for manufacturers, utilities, and retailers, and makes money by charging shipping fees based on volume and distance.

Focus

The stock's composite quant score is very low (0.2/10), but the relatively higher z-scores for Quality (+0.58), Inv Growth (+0.51), and Volatility (+0.41) show the factor model is slightly positive on the company's asset efficiency, low earnings variability, and controlled capital spending, though these are still far from strong.

Caution

NSC reports earnings in 6 days on July 23, 2026, and any miss on revenue or profit could cause a sharp gap down; despite 28 insider buys in the last six months, those buys totaled only 9,457 shares versus 11,566 shares sold by insiders, and analysts are heavily split with 17 holds and 0 sells, signaling no strong conviction in a near-term catalyst.

COMPOSITE: 0.2 (Rank #16, top 47%)

The Business

Union Pacific operates one of the largest railroad networks in North America, moving freight like coal, grain, chemicals, and automotive parts across 32,000 miles of track, and makes money by charging customers per shipment and per mile.

Focus

The composite score is near zero, but the Piotroski F-Score of 7 signals strong financial health, and the Quality z-score of +0.58 reflects decent profitability and low debt — these offset the weak Momentum and Value scores.

Caution

Earnings are in 6 days on 2026-07-23, and the stock could gap sharply on the print; despite 19 buy ratings, the recent net insider selling (one sell of 2,991 shares vs. many tiny buys totaling 2,872 shares) suggests insiders are trimming exposure ahead of the report, and the Yahoo article questions if the stock is already above fair value.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #17, top 43%)

The Business

Globe Life Inc. sells life insurance, accident, and health insurance policies primarily to middle-income Americans through direct marketing and exclusive agents. It makes money by collecting premiums and investing those funds in bonds and stocks, generating investment income and underwriting profits.

Focus

The high rank is driven by strong momentum (6-month momentum z-score +1.13) and value (z-score +1.05), meaning the stock has been rising and still looks cheap relative to earnings or book value. The low volatility (z-score +0.31) also supports the rank by indicating less price risk than peers.

Caution

Earnings are due in 5 days (July 22, 2026), and the stock could gap sharply—especially since insider selling has outpaced buying over the last six months (24 sells vs. 6 buys, a net negative signal). Additionally, one Yahoo headline explicitly warns the stock is '4% above fair value as financing gets reset,' suggesting rising interest costs could pressure profits, a risk management would likely address on the upcoming call.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #18, top 40%)

The Business

AbbVie makes money primarily from its immunology drug Humira, which faces biosimilar competition, and from newer blockbusters like Skyrizi and Rinvoq, plus a growing neuroscience franchise for conditions like migraines and Parkinson's.

Focus

An extremely high accruals z-score (+2.86) suggests earnings are being supported by non-cash items, and a strong inventory growth z-score (+1.09) indicates management is building stockpiles, which can mask underlying cash flow weakness.

Caution

Despite a stellar Piotroski F-Score of 8, insider selling heavily outweighs buying—14 insider sells (164,335 shares) vs. 16 buys (only 12,755 shares) in the last six months—signaling that executives are cashing out while the market is bullish, and with 31 analyst buys, no one is highlighting the risk of Humira's ongoing sales erosion from cheaper competitors.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #19, top 37%)

The Business

Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT) operates in the Real Estate sector. Gross profitability of 0.0%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.1. Momentum: neutral (+0.02), 6M Mom: strong (+0.68), Volatility: strong (+1.35), Quality: weak (-0.90), Value: neutral (+0.09), Accruals: neutral (-0.19), Inv Growth: neutral (-0.11).

Caution

Quality concerning at -0.90 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #20, top 33%)

The Business

Alliant Energy is a regulated utility that generates and distributes electricity and natural gas to roughly 1 million customers in Iowa and Wisconsin, making money by earning a state-approved return on its power plants and grid investments.

Focus

The quant rank is almost entirely driven by low volatility (z-score +1.60), which makes the stock appear stable; the quality score is essentially neutral (+0.05) and momentum, value, and accrual factors are all negative, so there is no broad fundamental strength.

Caution

Despite 24 insider buys, the 6 insider sells included 20,932 shares, and a Seeking Alpha analyst explicitly downgraded the stock with the title 'No Longer The Time To Buy Now', while the company's push for a 'new data center rate to shield regular customers' signals that surging data center demand could pressure retail ratepayers and invite regulatory scrutiny, not guaranteed profit growth.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #21, top 30%)

The Business

WEC (WEC) operates in the Unknown sector. Gross profitability of 0.1%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.1. Momentum: weak (-0.99), 6M Mom: weak (-0.87), Volatility: strong (+1.60), Quality: neutral (-0.12), Value: neutral (+0.01), Accruals: strong (+0.86), Inv Growth: neutral (-0.18).

Caution

Momentum concerning at -0.99 z-score; 6M Mom concerning at -0.87 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #22, top 27%)

The Business

Coca-Cola produces and sells non-alcoholic beverages, including sparkling soft drinks, water, juices, and dairy products like Fairlife, generating revenue through concentrate sales to bottlers and direct retail sales.

Focus

The high rank is driven by strong quality (z-score +1.05) and low volatility (z-score +1.26), indicating stable earnings and a less risky stock, while weak momentum and value scores are overlooked.

Caution

Despite a 29-buy analyst consensus, insider selling far outweighs buying (20 sells vs. 10 buys), and the Fairlife ransomware attack has halted production—a concrete operational disruption that could hurt near-term dairy segment revenue and margins, as management will likely address on the upcoming July 28 earnings call.

COMPOSITE: 0.1 (Rank #23, top 23%)

The Business

NUE (NUE) operates in the Basic Materials sector. Gross profitability of 0.0%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.0. Momentum: strong (+1.93), 6M Mom: strong (+1.83), Volatility: weak (-1.44), Quality: weak (-0.94), Value: weak (-0.79), Accruals: neutral (+0.49), Inv Growth: strong (+0.52).

Caution

Volatility concerning at -1.44 z-score; Quality concerning at -0.94 z-score; Value concerning at -0.79 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.0 (Rank #24, top 20%)

The Business

SNA (SNA) operates in the Industrials sector. Gross profitability of 0.2%. This reflects core business economics and competitive positioning.

Focus

Focus: Composite score 0.0. Momentum: neutral (-0.13), 6M Mom: neutral (-0.19), Volatility: neutral (+0.06), Quality: strong (+0.56), Value: neutral (-0.04), Accruals: weak (-0.72), Inv Growth: neutral (+0.12).

Caution

Accruals concerning at -0.72 z-score.

COMPOSITE: 0.0 (Rank #25, top 17%)

The Business

Williams Companies owns and operates natural gas pipelines and processing infrastructure, making money by transporting and storing natural gas for utilities, power plants, and industrial customers.

Focus

The stock's high quant rank is driven by a strong accruals z-score (+0.96), signaling that reported earnings are backed by cash rather than non-cash adjustments, and by positive six-month momentum (+0.64) reflecting the recent price rally from deals like the Blackstone $5.34B AI power agreement.

Caution

Despite the AI deal headlines, insiders sold 104,737 shares in the last six months while buying only 64,648, and the 0.0/10 composite quant score remains the lowest possible—suggesting the market may already be pricing in the AI pipeline story without corresponding fundamental strength in profitability or value.

COMPOSITE: 0.0 (Rank #26, top 13%)

The Business

Travelers is a property and casualty insurer that makes money by collecting premiums from individuals and businesses and investing those funds, paying out claims when accidents, lawsuits, or natural disasters occur.

Focus

The quant score is weak across the board, but the positive z-scores for low volatility (Volitility +0.88) and cheap valuation (Value +0.75) are the only relative bright spots, indicating the stock is less volatile than peers and trading at a discount to its book value.

Caution

Earnings are out in 0 days (July 17, 2026), and the stock could gap significantly on the print; Morgan Stanley just downgraded the stock, and insider selling has overwhelmed buying (121,420 shares sold vs. 55,158 bought over the last six months), suggesting those closest to the company are reducing exposure ahead of the report.

COMPOSITE: 0.0 (Rank #27, top 10%)

The Business

IDEX Corporation (IEX) makes specialized industrial equipment like pumps, valves, and fluid-handling systems for industries such as water treatment, food processing, and pharmaceuticals. It generates revenue by selling these components and aftermarket parts, with a focus on recurring repair and replacement orders.

Focus

The high Piotroski F-Score of 8 is driven by strong profitability and financial health (low debt, rising return on assets), while the positive Quality z-score (+0.60) and low Investment Growth z-score (+0.62) indicate disciplined capital allocation—meaning the company isn't piling on debt or overinvesting in inventory.

Caution

Despite insider buying outnumbering selling (20 buys vs 5 sells), the -0.87 Volatility z-score signals elevated stock price swings, and recent Yahoo headlines explicitly call IEX 'risky'—the company faces an earnings report within days (as of July 1, 2026), and management may repeat margin pressure warnings from prior quarters if the upcoming numbers disappoint.

COMPOSITE: 0.0 (Rank #28, top 7%)

The Business

Marriott International is a hospitality company that operates and franchises hotels, resorts, and timeshare properties under brands like Marriott, Sheraton, and Ritz-Carlton, making money primarily through management fees, franchise fees, and timeshare sales.

Focus

The stock's high quality factor z-score (+0.77) and positive investment growth z-score (+0.29) are driving its rank, reflecting strong profitability metrics and capital efficiency, while a good Piotroski F-Score of 7 shows solid financial strength.

Caution

Despite a Piotroski F-Score of 7, the quant score is near zero, and while insider activity shows 22 buys, the 8 sells involved over 4x more shares (41,038 vs 8,793), signaling bearish insider sentiment. Additionally, earnings are due for release in the second quarter of 2026, and analysts have 14 holds and 1 sell out of 31 ratings, indicating notable skepticism about near-term performance.

COMPOSITE: -0.0 (Rank #29, top 3%)

The Business

Corteva is an agricultural chemical and seed company, spun off from DowDuPont. It makes money by selling farmers things like herbicides, insecticides, and genetically modified seeds, with a strong focus on the corn and soybean markets.

Focus

The quant rank is effectively zero, meaning no factor is driving a high rank. The Accruals z-score (+0.89) is the highest, suggesting earnings quality is not being inflated by non-cash accounting gimmicks, but the score is still negative overall.

Caution

The single biggest risk is the New York Attorney General's lawsuit targeting Corteva alongside DuPont and 3M over PFAS 'forever chemical' pollution, which could lead to massive cleanup costs and legal liabilities. Additionally, while insider buying outnumbers selling by 30-to-1 in shares, the eight insider sells in the last six months include some small sales that could signal executives taking money off the table before the PFAS legal cloud darkens further.

COMPOSITE: -0.0 (Rank #30, top 0%)