The best-performing stocks typically have robust sales growth, increasing margins, and rising returns on capital, and those that can maintain this trifecta year in and year out often become the legends of the investing world.
It’s clear there’s a strong connection between sustained earnings growth and hall-of-fame returns. Keeping that in mind, here are three market-beating stocks that could turbocharge your returns.
Micron (MU)
Five-Year Return: +1,458%
Founded in the basement of a Boise, Idaho dental office in 1978, Micron (NASDAQ:MU) is a leading provider of memory chips used in thousands of devices across mobile, data centers, industrial, consumer, and automotive markets.
What Makes MU Stand Out?
- Annual revenue growth of 130% over the past two years was outstanding, reflecting market share gains this cycle
- Incremental sales significantly boosted profitability as its annual earnings per share growth of 65.6% over the last five years outstripped its revenue performance
- Strong free cash flow margin of 35.5% enables it to reinvest or return capital consistently, and its improved cash conversion implies it’s becoming a less capital-intensive business
Micron is trading at $1,093 per share, or 6x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free.
CSW (CSW)
Five-Year Return: +111%
With over two centuries of combined operations manufacturing and supplying, CSW (NYSE:CSW) offers special chemicals, coatings, sealants, and lubricants for various industries.
Why Will CSW Outperform?
- Impressive 19.7% annual revenue growth over the last two years indicates it’s winning market share this cycle
- Highly efficient business model is illustrated by its impressive 18.4% operating margin
- Earnings per share grew by 27.1% annually over the last two years and trumped its peers
At $287.26 per share, CSW trades at 23.2x forward P/E. Is now a good time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Parker-Hannifin (PH)
Five-Year Return: +228%
Founded in 1917, Parker Hannifin (NYSE:PH) is a manufacturer of motion and control systems for a wide variety of mobile, industrial and aerospace markets.
Why Should PH Be on Your Watchlist?
- Disciplined cost controls and effective management resulted in a strong long-term operating margin of 19.1%, and its rise over the last five years was fueled by some leverage on its fixed costs
- Share buybacks catapulted its annual earnings per share growth to 16.6%, which outperformed its revenue gains over the last five years
- PH is a free cash flow machine with the flexibility to invest in growth initiatives or return capital to shareholders, and its growing cash flow gives it even more resources to deploy
Parker-Hannifin’s stock price of $955 implies a valuation ratio of 27.8x forward P/E. Is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our full research report, it’s free.
Stocks We Like Even More
WHILE YOU’RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don’t just beat the market once. They do it again. And again. Robust revenue growth, rising free cash flow, returns on capital that leave their competition in the dust. The market has already rewarded these businesses.
But our AI platform says the party isn’t over. Find out which 9 stocks made the cut this week — FREE. Get Our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks for Free HERE.
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,460% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+214% between June 2020 and June 2025). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.