If you are looking for investment opportunities among U.S.-listed equities, you may want to consider the stocks of companies that have seen their free cash flow increase significantly in recent years. As a result, these businesses should be flexible enough to continue to support the development of projects and return cash to shareholders.
The following four stocks meet the above criteria. Furthermore, Wall Street sell-side analysts have issued positive recommendation ratings for these stocks, meaning their share prices are expected to improve in the months ahead.
IHS Markit
The first company that investors may want to consider is IHS Markit Ltd. (INFO, Financial), a London-based provider of information, analytics and solutions worldwide.
The company has seen its free cash flow per share increase by 8.40% per year over the last 10 years, by 6.30% per year over the last five years and by 49% over the last 12 months.
Analysts estimate the company will keep growing its earnings per share by 12.70% this year, by 10.60% in 2022 and by 11.12% per year over the next five years.
On Wall Street, as of January, the stock has three strong buy, five buy, 10 hold and one underperform recommendation rating. The average target price is $139.86 per share.
The share price ($117.65 as of Jan. 21) has risen by 34.30% over the past year for a market capitalization of $46.92 billion and a 52-week range of $83.93 to $135.82.
ZoomInfo Technologies
The second company to consider is ZoomInfo Technologies Inc. (ZI, Financial), a Vancouver, Washington-based provider of go-to-market intelligence and engagement platforms used by sales and marketing teams of enterprises in the United States and internationally.
The company has seen its free cash flow per share increase by 154.50% over the last 12 months.
Analysts estimate that the company's earnings per share will increase by 52.90% this year, by 32.70% in 2022 and by 42.10% per year over the next five years.
On Wall Street, as of December, the stock has four strong buy, 14 buy and one hold recommendation rating. The average target price is $83.56 per share.
The performance of the share price ($45.99 on Jan. 21) is almost flat year over year, yielding a market cap of $18.54 billion. The 52-week range is $37.86 to $79.17.
Dynatrace
The third company that investors may want to consider is Dynatrace Inc. (DT, Financial), a Waltham, Massachusetts-based provider of a software intelligence platform for running enterprise cloud applications.
The company has seen its free cash flow per share increase by 101.40% over the last 12 months.
Analysts expect the company's earnings per share will increase by 3.20% this year and by 23.10% in 2022. Over the next five years, it is expected to go up by 20% per year on average.
On Wall Street, as of December, the stock has six strong buy, 13 buy and two hold recommendation ratings. The average target price is $81.84 per share.
The share price ($48.49 as of Jan. 21) has climbed 9.24% over the past year, determining a market capitalization of $13.82 billion and a 52-week range of $39.82 to $80.13.
RBC Bearings
The fourth company that investors may want to consider is RBC Bearings Inc. (ROLL, Financial), an Oxford, Connecticut-based manufacturer and marketer of precision-engineered bearings and components in North America and internationally.
The company has seen its free cash flow per share increase by 17.50% per year over the past 10 years, by 13.20% per year over the last five years and by 9.90% over the last 12 months.
Analysts expect the company's earnings per share to fall 6.20% this year, but rise 59.80% in 2022 and grow 11% over the next five years.
On Wall Street, as of January, the stock has two strong buy and three buy ratings. The average target price is $256.25 per share.
The share price ($190.40 as of Jan. 21) has increased by 4.97% over the past year, determining a market capitalization of $5.50 billion and a 52-week range of $160.51 to $250.52.
