1 S&P 500 Stock for Long-Term Investors and 2 We Find Risky

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) is often seen as a benchmark for strong businesses, but that doesn’t mean every stock is worth owning. Some companies face significant challenges, whether it’s stagnating growth, heavy debt, or disruptive new competitors.

Even among blue-chip stocks, not all investments are created equal - which is why we built StockStory to help you navigate the market. Keeping that in mind, here is one S&P 500 stock that is leading the market forward and two best left off your watchlist.

Two Stocks to Sell:

Church & Dwight (CHD)

Market Cap: $22.69 billion

Best known for its Arm & Hammer baking soda, Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD) is a household and personal care products company with a vast portfolio that spans laundry detergent to toothbrushes to hair removal creams.

Why Does CHD Worry Us?

1. Annual revenue growth of 4.1% over the last three years was below our standards for the consumer staples sector
2. Core business is underperforming as its organic revenue has disappointed over the past two years, suggesting it might need acquisitions to stimulate growth
3. Demand is forecasted to shrink as its estimated sales for the next 12 months are flat

At $95.72 per share, Church & Dwight trades at 25.4x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than CHD.

Baxter (BAX)

Market Cap: $11.47 billion

With a history dating back to 1931 and products used in over 100 countries, Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) provides essential healthcare products including dialysis therapies, IV solutions, infusion systems, surgical products, and patient monitoring technologies to hospitals and clinics worldwide.

Why Should You Dump BAX?

1. Weak constant currency growth over the past two years indicates challenges in maintaining its market share
2. Earnings per share fell by 7.2% annually over the last five years while its revenue was flat, showing each sale was less profitable
3. Negative returns on capital show management lost money while trying to expand the business

Baxter is trading at $21.99 per share, or 11.2x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including BAX in your portfolio.

One Stock to Buy:

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)

Market Cap: $61.87 billion

Born from the 2015 split of the iconic Silicon Valley pioneer Hewlett-Packard, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE) provides edge-to-cloud technology solutions that help businesses capture, analyze, and act upon their data across hybrid IT environments.

Why Will HPE Beat the Market?

1. ARR growth averaged 50.7% over the past two years, showing customers are willing to take multi-year bets on its offerings
2. Massive revenue base of $38.79 billion makes it a well-known name that influences purchasing decisions
3. Market share is on track to rise over the next 12 months as its 25.4% projected revenue growth implies demand will accelerate from its two-year trend

Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s stock price of $48.85 implies a valuation ratio of 11.6x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

Stocks We Like Even More

ONE MORE THING: Top 5 Growth Stocks. The biggest stock winners almost always had one thing in common before they ran. Revenue growing like crazy. Meta. CrowdStrike. Broadcom. Our AI flagged all three. They returned 315%, 314%, and 455%, respectively.

Find out which 5 stocks it’s flagging this month — FREE. Get Our Top 5 Growth Stocks for Free HERE.

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,460% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+271% between June 2020 and June 2025). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.