Great businesses at fair prices — here's why each makes the list.
…and 368 more buy candidates in the full briefing.
40 name(s) sliding toward Avoid:
Value $104,455 ▲ +4.5% since 2026-07-16 · ▼ -$1,116 (-1.1%) since yesterday · S&P +1.7% · Cash $3,897
| Stock | Held | Price | Today | Since buy | Grade |
| CF | 83 sh | $134.33 | ▲ +0.7% | +3.6% | 89 |
| EOG | 78 sh | $145.36 | ▲ +0.1% | +7.9% | 87 |
| FHI | 156 sh | $61.45 | ▼ -1.5% | +2.5% | 92 |
| HIG | 73 sh | $135.66 | ▼ -2.0% | -0.7% | 90 |
| INTU | 33 sh | $318.93 | ▼ -4.1% | +8.2% | 87 |
| LOPE | 69 sh | $151.53 | ▼ -0.7% | +5.8% | 90 |
| LULU | 85 sh | $103.19 | ▲ +2.6% | -13.2% | 87 |
| NBIX | 58 sh | $155.13 | ▼ -0.3% | -9.6% | 89 |
| PRI | 31 sh | $290.33 | ▼ -1.8% | -7.2% | 93 |
| RMD | 49 sh | $221.05 | ▼ -3.2% | +9.0% | 84 |
Fictional money · prices update daily · a live test of whether the picks actually work.
Does the grading actually work? Two honest halves — a backtest on past data, and the real live record as it ripens. It reports the truth even when that's “not enough data yet.”
Reconstructed 318 graded moments across 150 companies (a sample of 150 names), then measured what each actually returned over the next 12 months.
Do higher grades earn better returns?
| Grade | Names | 12-mo return | vs S&P |
| A (80-100) | 45 | +14.9% | +1.5% |
| B (65-79) | 159 | +11.3% | -4.2% |
| C (50-64) | 90 | +12.7% | -1.6% |
| D-F (<50) | 24 | +41.0% | +27.2% |
→ higher grades did WORSE here (gap 26.1 pts) ⚠️
37 snapshot(s) since 2026-07-06, none ripe yet — first 6-month check ~2027-01-06.
Backtest limits: ~5 years back, surviving companies only, restated statements — a strong first read, not gospel. The live record is the hindsight-free gold standard and strengthens every month. Refreshed 2026-09-06. Educational only — not financial advice.
Market weather: FAIR (SPY above its rising 200-day average).
The biggest story this week. Lululemon reported Q2 results on Sept 3 and they were rough: net revenue fell 4% year-over-year to $2.4 billion, comparable sales declined 9%, and the company slashed its full-year revenue and earnings guidance for a second time. The stock crashed 17% on Sept 4 on enormous volume (37 million shares, ~10x normal). It's now down over 50% year-to-date.
Management blamed "negative social media commentary" for hurting store traffic and said leggings sales — a core category — fell 20%. The weakness has spread beyond North America to China, where same-store sales missed expectations.
New CEO Heidi O'Neill (a former Nike executive) officially took over and outlined three priorities: innovative products, stronger operations, and deeper customer connections. She was candid that these problems "will not be fixed overnight." Multiple analysts cut price targets: JPMorgan slashed theirs to $95 from $154, Truist set $82, and BMO Capital initiated with an Underperform rating and $70 target (implying 32% further downside).
One notable contrarian signal: Michael Burry ("The Big Short" investor) disclosed LULU as one of his three largest call-option positions (~16% of his portfolio), arguing the company has substantial cash, almost no debt, and historically high returns on capital.
What this means alongside the grade: The grade of 87.4 reflects LULU's still-strong balance sheet and historical profitability — the fundamentals the model measures haven't collapsed. But the news is clearly negative: demand is weakening, guidance is being cut, and the turnaround will take time. When the grade and the news disagree like this, it's a sign to be cautious. The grade says the business has quality bones; the news says the near-term is ugly. This one deserves extra patience and watching — it's not a "rush to buy" despite the high grade.
CF Industries hit a new record stock price in early September, driven by a fertilizer supply crunch. The stock is up 18.1% since its last earnings report. Headlines point to tightening global nitrogen supply as the catalyst. The company also filed an SEC 8-K (Sept 3), though the filing was inaccessible for detailed reading (SEC returned 403).
Separately, a headline notes CF's CFO-level accounting chief plans a 2027 retirement — a succession event worth monitoring but not a red flag on its own.
What this means alongside the grade: Supply-driven pricing power supports the strong fundamentals that underpin CF's 89.1 grade. The record high suggests the market agrees with the tool's positive read, though buying at all-time highs always carries timing risk.
Primerica's Q2 showed 13% net income growth to $202 million, but one article flagged that the "investment boom masks a shrinking sales force" — strong investment income is compensating for declining agent headcount. The stock is down 8.8% since earnings despite the solid profit numbers.
UBS Asset Management sold ~48,000 shares, though institutional shuffling of this size is routine.
What this means alongside the grade: Primerica's grade of 93 is driven by excellent financial health, profitability, and valuation (P/E 12, FCF yield 11.6%). The shrinking sales force is a real concern to watch over time — if agent attrition continues, it could eventually pressure revenue growth. For now, the bottom line remains very strong and the valuation is cheap.
RBC Capital reaffirmed its rating and highlighted that Ingrezza and the newer drug Crenessity should drive a strong second half, calling 2027 "catalyst-rich." The stock is up 61% over its recent run. A director donated 1,000 shares (philanthropic, not a sale signal), and the company is presenting at investor conferences in September.
What this means alongside the grade: The analyst tone is clearly positive, aligned with the tool's 89.3 grade. Revenue growth of 40% YoY and EPS growth of 31% are exceptional for a biotech. The main risk is valuation after the big run-up (P/E-based valuation score is the weakest pillar at 75).
Deckers' direct-to-consumer (DTC) channel continues to expand, supporting a favorable sales mix with better margins. A Simply Wall St. analysis argues the stock still trades below fair value despite recent weakness.
However, BMO Capital initiated coverage with an Underperform rating — they're bearish on Deckers alongside their negative Lululemon call. This is a single-analyst view and goes against the broader quality picture.
What this means alongside the grade: The 88.2 grade reflects strong quality and profitability. The BMO bearish initiation is worth noting as a contrarian datapoint, but the underlying business metrics (high returns on capital, DTC growth) support the tool's positive read.
Kinsale got a mention in the Accelerant take-private deal story: Thoma Bravo's acquisition of a specialty insurance platform suggests this corner of insurance may be undervalued, which could draw more investor attention to Kinsale as a comparable. Multiple institutional investors (Giverny Capital, Maren Capital, Ohio pension fund) added shares recently.
That said, the brokerage consensus on KNSL is currently "Reduce" — analysts see the stock as fairly valued after its run. Three other insurance names (Travelers, Allstate) were highlighted alongside KNSL as beneficiaries of AI-driven operational improvements.
What this means alongside the grade: The tool's 87.5 grade reflects strong fundamentals. The "Reduce" consensus rating is a valuation call, not a quality concern. The Accelerant deal is a mild positive (validates the specialty insurance model), but no direct catalyst for KNSL.
Mostly institutional trading headlines this week — Saudi Central Bank, Amundi, and Nykredit all adding shares. A Simply Wall St. piece argues HIG "looks like a bargain on earnings." No material company-specific news beyond routine market commentary.
What this means alongside the grade: Quiet news is fine news for a steady compounder. The 90.3 grade is backed by an exceptional valuation (P/E 9, FCF yield 15%) and low beta (0.45). Nothing here changes the picture.
Federated Hermes is pushing into APAC tokenization — partnering with Conduit to offer blockchain-based financial products in Asia, leveraging its money market franchise. This could be a new AUM growth lever as institutional adoption of tokenized assets accelerates. Brokerages give it a "Moderate Buy" consensus.
What this means alongside the grade: The tokenization push is a forward-looking initiative, not yet in the numbers. The grade of 92.4 rests on the core business: 31% ROE, 8% revenue CAGR, P/E of 11, and very low beta (0.63). The APAC expansion is a modest positive.
The stock dipped 1.6% heading into Monday's open. News is mostly institutional: Nykredit invested $9.8M, Munich Re purchased shares. A headline about RJF naming "top banking stocks" and "2 stocks worth buying" is about Raymond James the analyst firm making recommendations, not news about the stock itself.
Board appointed new directors and announced a dividend — routine governance.
What this means alongside the grade: No material catalyst. The 88.5 grade reflects strong financials and reasonable valuation. A quiet week.
The stock is down 10.3% in 4 weeks, which one Zacks article calls a potential turnaround setup. Multiple institutions (AXQ Capital, Legal & General, Manulife) bought shares. No company-specific negative news — the pullback appears to be market-driven rather than fundamental.
What this means alongside the grade: The grade of 89.5 reflects top-tier financial health (essentially zero leverage), 31% ROE, and a P/E of 18 with 0.9 PEG. If the sell-off is indeed just market noise, the tool's high grade aligns with the "buy the dip" thesis — but always do your own research.
The most active story among crash-watch names. Iron Mountain's data center business grew 39% year-over-year in Q2, with the three "growth segments" (data centers, digital services, asset management) now representing 35% of quarterly revenue and each expanding over 50% annually. Year-to-date leasing reached 110 megawatts through July, including a large 51 MW hyperscaler contract in Mumbai. The company also expanded into Saudi Arabia with an AI-powered partnership with the Social Development Bank to modernize loan processing using Iron Mountain InSight AI, targeting a Q3 launch.
Fair value estimates are being boosted on higher AI growth assumptions. The records storage business (93.4% retention rate) provides stable cash flows to fund the data center buildout.
What this means alongside the grade: The low grade (39.3) is driven by Iron Mountain's REIT-typical high leverage and thin margins — the same structural features that make all REITs score poorly on the health/profitability pillars. The AI-driven growth story is genuinely compelling, but it doesn't fix the balance sheet metrics that the grading system penalizes. This is a case where the model's blind spots (it treats REITs like regular companies) matter. The stock is on crash watch because of fundamentals the model measures, not because the business is failing.
Whirlpool is down 15% since its last earnings report. HighTower Advisors sold 95,300 shares. One Seeking Alpha piece argues Whirlpool's debt reduction is creating a long-term value opportunity and upgraded the stock, but the broader picture remains challenging: weak consumer appliance demand and margin pressure.
What this means alongside the grade: The 45.6 grade reflects real fundamental weakness. The debt-reduction story is encouraging but doesn't offset the demand headwinds. Appropriately on crash watch.
TXNM priced a $400 million equity offering today (Sept 9) to repay term debt ahead of its pending Blackstone acquisition. A Seeking Alpha analysis notes the deal spread is thin given regulatory uncertainty. This dilutive offering + the regulatory overhang explain the low grade.
What this means alongside the grade: The equity issuance is dilutive to shareholders but strengthens the balance sheet pre-acquisition — a necessary step. The low grade reflects ongoing uncertainty. Wait for the Blackstone deal to close (or not) before drawing conclusions.
Ormat is down modestly (~3%) since last earnings. One analyst upgraded the stock from bearish (noted on Sept 4). Mostly institutional reshuffling — Van Eck sold 226k shares while UBS and others added. No major operational news.
What this means alongside the grade: The grade reflects structural concerns (likely valuation and growth metrics). The analyst upgrade is a mild positive. No new red flags, but nothing to change the cautious posture.
NNN REIT maintains a 69% AFFO payout ratio and just marked its 37th consecutive annual dividend increase. Q2 AFFO was $0.90/share, up 5.9% YoY. Occupancy is 99.1% and the company has $1.4B in available liquidity.
However, a 247 Wall St. analysis flagged a key risk: NNN's tenants lean heavily toward non-investment-grade credits, creating "meaningful tail risk" during economic downturns. Net debt-to-EBITDA of 5.7x is also elevated.
What this means alongside the grade: Like IRM, NNN is a REIT, so the model penalizes its leverage structure. The dividend is well-covered and growing, but the below-investment-grade tenant base is a genuine risk the grade may actually be capturing correctly. Appropriately on the watch list.
Most Yahoo Finance article pages returned only JavaScript shells without article body text — a known limitation where Yahoo's SPA architecture doesn't render for automated fetches. The SEC 8-K filings (CF Industries, Lululemon) returned 403 errors. CNN returned a 451 (geoblocked). TheStreet and Investors.com were also inaccessible. Google News redirect links (many of the MarketBeat/Seeking Alpha/Benzinga headlines) were not followed because they typically resolve to the same SPA shell problem. The articles that did load successfully (Stocktwits, Motley Fool, 247 Wall St., Just-Style, MarketBeat) provided the core of this digest.
MarketMind is a personal, educational stock-research tool. Every morning it screens roughly 900 large- and mid-cap U.S. companies, grades each one from 0–100 on five research-backed pillars — financial health, profitability, growth, valuation, and moat — and surfaces the businesses that look strong and reasonably priced.
The idea it rests on: over the long run, a stock's price follows the company's profits. So rather than chasing hype, MarketMind looks for great businesses at fair prices and lets time do the work.
It also runs a Paper Fund — a fictional $100,000 that automatically follows the tool's own Buy ratings — so you can watch, over time, whether the picks actually work. It's pretend money: nothing here is ever bought or sold for real.
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