1 S&P 500 Stock to Own for Decades and 2 We Avoid

Anthony Lee Mon, May 4, 2026 at 11:08 PM EDT 3 min read **

• ^GSPC
• HLT
• PWR
• GILD

While the S&P 500 (^GSPC) includes industry leaders, not every stock in the index is a winner. Some companies are past their prime, weighed down by poor execution, weak financials, or structural headwinds.

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 could deliver good returns and two best left off your watchlist.

• More from Yahoo Scout How does StockStory identify high-growth stock opportunities?

What growth issues are affecting Gilead Sciences?

What drives Quanta's strong business performance outlook?

Why does Hilton face revenue and profitability challenges?

Two Stocks to Sell:

Hilton (HLT)

Market Cap: $72.53 billion

Founded in 1919, Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) is a global hospitality company with a portfolio of hotel brands.

Why Do We Think HLT Will Underperform?**

Revenue per room has disappointed over the past two years due to weaker trends in its daily rates and occupancy levels

• Subpar operating margin of 22.1% constrains its ability to invest in process improvements or effectively respond to new competitive threats

• Free cash flow margin is not anticipated to grow over the next year

Hilton’s stock price of $318.42 implies a valuation ratio of 35.2x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including HLT in your portfolio, it’s free.

Gilead Sciences (GILD)

Market Cap: $163.4 billion

From its groundbreaking work in developing the first single-tablet regimens for HIV treatment, Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) develops and markets innovative medicines for life-threatening diseases including HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19, and cancer.

Why Are We Wary of GILD?

• The company has faced growth challenges as its 3.6% annual revenue increases over the last five years fell short of other healthcare companies

• Free cash flow margin shrank by 7.5 percentage points over the last five years, suggesting the company is consuming more capital to stay competitive

• Diminishing returns on capital suggest its earlier profit pools are drying up

Gilead Sciences is trading at $132.70 per share, or 15.3x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why GILD doesn’t pass our bar.

One Stock to Buy:

Quanta (PWR)

Market Cap: $111.4 billion

A construction engineering services company, Quanta (NYSE:PWR) provides infrastructure solutions to a variety of sectors, including energy and communications.

Why Will PWR Outperform?

• Average backlog growth of 21.2% over the past two years shows it has a steady sales pipeline that will drive future orders

• Market share will likely rise over the next 12 months as its expected revenue growth of 18.7% is robust

• Earnings growth has massively outpaced its peers over the last two years as its EPS has compounded at 26% annually

** Story Continues At $743.60 per share, Quanta trades at 51.2x 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 for 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 (+1,326% 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.

Terms and Privacy Policy [Privacy Dashboard ](https://guce.yahoo.com/privacy-dashboard?