We recently published a list of 10 Best Beaten Down Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) stands against other best beaten down stocks to buy according to analysts.
JPMorgan released a market update where it highlighted the US Fed’s recent decision to keep the rates unchanged. Also, the US Fed decreased the growth forecasts and increased the near-term inflation expectations. The futures markets are pricing 2 interest rate cuts this year and a ~50% chance of the third cut. Jose Torres, Senior Economist at Interactive Brokers, believes that stocks are being impacted as slowdown worries continue to pressure the outlook for broader corporate earnings growth. According to him, investors continue to pile up shares in the defensive consumer staple, utilities, and healthcare segments and the real estate and energy areas.
What Lies Ahead as Q1 2025 Approaches its End?
Reuters reported that analysts have been turning more cautious about the US corporate earnings for Q1 2025, as Trump’s policies continue to threaten to trigger a global trade war that can impact the broader economic growth. Reuters, while quoting Tajinder Dhillon (senior research analyst at LSEG), noted that S&P 500 forecasts for Q1 2025 have declined by 4.5 percentage points since January 1. Notably, this has been the largest downward revision since Q4 2023.
The earnings growth for the S&P 500 companies is expected at 7.7% YoY, marking the lowest since Q3 2023 as well as a significant decline from 17.1% in Q4 2024. The worries related to the import tariffs and retaliation by US trade partners, together with the government cutbacks, can push the broader economy into recession have witnessed an increase over the past few weeks, reported Reuters.
READ ALSO: 7 Best Stocks to Buy For Long-Term and 8 Cheap Jim Cramer Stocks to Invest In.
What’s Next for the S&P 500?
CNBC, while quoting Scott Wren (senior global market strategist at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute), stated that numerous uncertainties can negatively impact the broader stock market, such as tariffs as well as a potential rebound in inflation. Furthermore, an increase in bond yields can also pose a headwind, as per Wren. Notably, increased yields can impact the demand for US stocks.
That being said, a favorable backdrop of healthy economic growth and consumer spending, together with relatively low unemployment, can help the S&P 500 to deliver ~12% in 2025. As per Wren, this would be marginally higher than the long-term historical average. The strategist thinks that the investors are required to be optimistic.
Amidst these trends, let us now have a look at the 10 Best Beaten Down Stocks to Buy According to Analysts.
Our Methodology
To list the 10 Best Beaten Down Stocks to Buy According to Analysts, we used a screener and shortlisted the stocks that are trading close to their respective 52-week lows and that analysts see significant upside to. Next, the stocks were arranged in ascending order of their average upside potential, as of March 21. We also mentioned the hedge fund sentiment around each stock, as of Q4 2024.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
Aerial view of automated industrial machines at a modern factory floor, showcasing the company’s innovative machinery.
Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT)
Stock Price as of March 21: $52.97
Average Upside Potential: ~40%
52-week Low: $52.02
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 27
Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) operates as an industrial technology company offering technology solutions to secure, detect, and authenticate customers’ important assets. Analysts at DA Davidson reiterated a “Buy” rating on the company’s stock, with a price objective of $100.00. They remain optimistic regarding its potential for strong earnings growth, thanks to its healthy balance sheet and FCF. Also, Baird analysts upped Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT)’s price target to $85.00 from $76.00, maintaining an “Outperform” rating. Notably, both firms highlighted the potential for the company’s M&A activities to fuel future growth.
Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) reached a record-high backlog in Crane Currency during 2024, and in CPI, it delivered mid-single-digit growth excluding gaming. The company has significantly increased its leadership in the authentication market, with OpSec integration progressing as anticipated and the acquisition of De La Rue Authentication Solutions on track to close in Q2. Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) announced that it has completed the acquisition of the Smart Packaging assets of TruTag Technologies. The addition of this technology to the company’s product portfolio expands its capabilities and further enhances its ability to offer differentiated and innovative technology solutions.
Conestoga Capital Advisors, an asset management company, released its Q4 2024 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) is a leading provider of trusted technology solutions to secure, detect, and authenticate its customers assets. Crane NXT’s roots go back to 1801 when Zenas Crane founded the Crane Paper Company in Dalton, MA. CXT has numerous technologies and segments that revolve around security and detection. CXT works with over 50 central banks to provide security for their currency and has been the US’s sole supplier of currency paper since 1879. CXT also secures and authenticates consumer goods, passports, and digital content. CXT provides technology and hardware solutions to authenticate payment transactions. Altogether, we believe CXT is a 5- 7% organic revenue growth company with margin expansion that yields double-digit EBTIDA growth.”
Overall, CXT ranks 6th on our list of best beaten down stocks to buy according to analysts. While we acknowledge the potential of CXT as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued AI stock that is more promising than CXT but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
