Whether you see them or not, industrials businesses play a crucial part in our daily activities. Their momentum is also rising as lower interest rates have incentivized higher capital spending. As a result, the industry has posted a 19.6% gain over the past six months, beating the S&P 500 by 4.3 percentage points.

Nevertheless, investors must be mindful as the cycle can unexpectedly turn. When this inevitably happens, only the elite companies will survive and ultimately thrive. Keeping that in mind, here are three industrials stocks we’re swiping left on.

Textron (TXT)

Market Cap: $14.65 billion

Listed on the NYSE in 1947, Textron (NYSE: TXT) provides products and services in the aerospace, defense, industrial, and finance sectors.

Why Is TXT Not Exciting?

1. Sizable revenue base leads to growth challenges as its 3% annual revenue increases over the last two years fell short of other industrials companies
2. Absence of organic revenue growth over the past two years suggests it may have to lean into acquisitions to drive its expansion
3. Free cash flow margin dropped by 5.6 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up

At $83.13 per share, Textron trades at 12.6x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than TXT.

Trimble (TRMB)

Market Cap: $19.58 billion

Playing a role in the construction of the Paris Grand, Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) offers geospatial devices and technology to the agriculture, construction, transportation, and logistics industries.

Why Is TRMB Risky?

1. Core business is underperforming as its organic revenue has disappointed over the past two years, suggesting it might need acquisitions to stimulate growth
2. 12 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin over the last five years reflects the company’s increased investments to defend its market position
3. ROIC of 6.3% reflects management’s challenges in identifying attractive investment opportunities, and its shrinking returns suggest its past profit sources are losing steam

Trimble’s stock price of $82.21 implies a valuation ratio of 24.4x forward P/E. If you’re considering TRMB for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Crane (CR)

Market Cap: $10.82 billion

Based in Connecticut, Crane (NYSE: CR) is a diversified manufacturer of engineered industrial products, including fluid handling, and aerospace technologies.

Why Are We Wary of CR?

1. Products and services are facing significant end-market challenges during this cycle as sales have declined by 5.2% annually over the last five years
2. Organic sales performance over the past two years indicates the company may need to make strategic adjustments or rely on M&A to catalyze faster growth
3. Performance over the past two years was negatively impacted by new share issuances as its earnings per share grew slower than its revenue

Crane is trading at $187.87 per share, or 29.4x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with CR, check out our full research report (it’s free for active Edge members).

Stocks We Like More

The market’s up big this year - but there’s a catch. Just 4 stocks account for half the S&P 500’s entire gain. That kind of concentration makes investors nervous, and for good reason. While everyone piles into the same crowded names, smart investors are hunting quality where no one’s looking - and paying a fraction of the price. Check out the high-quality names we’ve flagged in our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 244% over the last five years (as of June 30, 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

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