Should you buy the dip? It’s a popular but potentially dangerous strategy, especially for less experienced investors. That’s because a struggling stock that’s near its 52-week low can dip further to new lows and continue trending down indefinitely.
So before buying a stock that has fallen deeply in value, you should do your due diligence and be fairly confident in its ability to rebound. Otherwise, you could just be setting yourself up for losses as the stock potentially falls further into a tailspin.
Three stocks that have fallen more than 30% in just the past three months are Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ: WBA), Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ: DJT), and Intel (NASDAQ: INTC). But despite their seemingly low valuations, these aren’t stocks you should rush out to buy.
Walgreens Boots Alliance
In the past three months, shares of pharmacy retailer Walgreens Boots Alliance have crashed by nearly 40%. The healthcare stock has been hitting new lows this year as concerns are rising about the safety of both its dividend and its business.
New CEO Tim Wentworth came aboard less than a year ago to fix the struggling healthcare company, but it’s no easy task as Walgreens continues to struggle with profitability. In two of the past three quarters, it has even burned through cash just from its day-to-day operating activities. This is before even factoring in its dividend payments, which it’s still making after Wentworth reduced the payout earlier this year rather than outright suspending it — a move the company still may need to end up making.
Walgreens may look cheap, trading at just 6 times its trailing earnings. But this is what I’d call a classic value trap. The business is on shaky ground right now, and that valuation could look expensive in a year or two if Walgreens’ financials deteriorate. Its low valuation could make it an intriguing stock to track, but without an exceptionally high risk tolerance, it won’t be a suitable investment option for most investors.
Trump Media & Technology Group
A stock that may be even riskier than Walgreens is Trump Media & Technology Group. That’s because the company generates minimal revenue, long-term profitability is a huge question mark, and it is largely just a highly volatile, risky meme stock to own. It has effectively become a way for speculators to bet on who will win the presidency later this year.
But there isn’t much of a case to invest in the stock beyond that. It is down 56% over the past three months. This is largely a speculative buy, as its Truth Social platform isn’t generating much in revenue. While Trump Media may be optimistic about its opportunities in the streaming industry, bigger and more established media companies have struggled in that realm.
Intel
Computer giant Intel is another struggling stock that can’t seem to catch a break. The tech stock went over a cliff after reporting earnings earlier this month, as its numbers were dreadful. Not only did the company report a significant $1.6 billion net loss during the period ending June 29, but its sales also declined from the prior-year period, and Intel announced it was suspending its dividend and looking to cut costs.
Investors are having doubts about the company’s foundry business and Intel’s ability to be a leading chipmaker, and these latest results don’t inspire any confidence that it’s going in the right direction. Intel’s stock is trading at a price-to-book multiple of less than 0.8 as it has recently hit a new 52-week low, and it, too, may look like a cheap buy.
But with an uncertain path ahead, investors shouldn’t assume the worst is behind the business. There’s still plenty of risk for investors who buy Intel stock. Without some sign of an improvement in future quarters, it wouldn’t be surprising to see its shares fall even lower in the months ahead.
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David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Intel and recommends the following options: long January 2025 $45 calls on Intel and short August 2024 $35 calls on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
3 Struggling Stocks That Aren’t Worth Buying on the Dip was originally published by The Motley Fool
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