If you’re looking out for stocks to avoid, you’ve come to the right place. Knowing when to give up on a company, cut your losses, and move on can be difficult for investors. But knowing when to sell is just as important as knowing when to buy. The companies I mention below are stocks that the average investor shouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole. The only things these companies offer investors are uncertainty and a massive risk of potential losses.
AMC Entertainment (AMC)
First on the list of stocks to avoid right now is AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC). Headquartered in Leawood, Kansas, AMC owns and operates 950 movie theaters in the U.S. and Europe. They are a very well-known meme stock that rose to prominence following the game-changing events of the GameStop (NYSE:GME) short squeeze in early 2021. At this time, AMC Entertainment is trading at just over $8 per share. However, it reached an all-time high on June 17, 2021 at $607.30 per share due to a short squeeze similar to GameStop. Since then, retail investors have been in and out of this stock, looking to make huge returns.
Since September, their stock price has fallen by 90%. On Aug. 8, the company reported second-quarter earnings, which stated a net income of $8.6 million compared to a net loss in Q2 2022 of $122 million. They saw revenue growth of 15.6% compared to the previous year.
It was also recently released that for the upcoming premiere of the Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film, AMC sold approximately $26 million in advance ticket sales, marking the most significant single-day revenue for AMC.
AMC Entertainment has seen some negative results lately, including not having a positive EPS since Q4 2021. However, the company may see near-term hype regarding the recent earnings report and the partnership to release the Taylor Swift movie, leading to significant revenue. But, regarding risky investments, AMC Entertainment is at the top. Long-term investors in the company have already lost nearly all of their initial investment due to the stock trading at historical lows, making retail investors more and more skeptical of the company overall.
Rite Aid (RAD)
Rite Aid (NYSE:RAD) operates retail drugstore chains. They provide pharmacy services such as prescription management for their customers, and they also sell various over-the-counter medications, personal care products, household essentials, and food and drinks. They are headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Over the past year, the company has seen a drastic fall in its overall share of 92%. They also have nearly 22% short interest at this time.
In its most recent earnings release, the company stated that its revenue declined by 6%, and it saw a net loss that nearly tripled compared to last year.
Rite Aid, CVS Pharmacy (NYSE:CVS), and Walgreens Boot Alliance (NYSE:WBA) have all been recently hit with large federal opioid lawsuits. CVS and Walgreens have agreed to billions in settlements. But this may be what sent Rite Aid into bankruptcy protection. CVS and Walgreens have both been hit hard by these lawsuits, and they are much stronger companies financially overall. Rite Aid’s future looks bleak.
Beyond Meat (BYND)
Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND), located in El Segundo, California, is last but not least on the list of stocks to avoid right now. The company produces plant-based meat products and sells them through grocery stores, restaurants, and other food service outlets. When the company started trading publicly back in 2019, they were such a hit for investors they started trading on their IPO date at $46 per share, and within three months they were trading at over $200 per share. Multiple years later, they are trading at $10, which is a 51% drop so far this year alone. The company also has a large amount of short interest at approximately 37%.
On Aug. 7, they released their second quarter financial results, which stated a drop in overall revenue of 31%. Furthermore, they nearly cut their net loss in half compared to last year.
Consumers aren’t nearly as interested as they once were in plant-based food products, demonstrated by the continued decline in their sales internationally and within the U.S. In this last quarter, Beyond Meat reported a decrease in retail sales of 39% in the U.S. and a drop of 16% internationally compared to the year before, respectively.
As of this writing, Noah Bolton did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.