The year-end holiday is approaching, and the financial markets are entering a traditional period of portfolio consolidation. December has always been the best time for investors to reassess their positions, execute tax-loss harvesting, and adjust allocations for the next year. Although the overall U.S. stock market is strong in 2025, some large-cap stocks are still underperforming. Benzinga has identified five stocks that may be worth considering for sale before the arrival of 2026. This is purely market observation and not an investment recommendation.
Target (NYSE: TGT)
For Target (NYSE: TGT), 2025 is proving to be a challenging year. Target (NYSE: TGT) is one of the few U.S. retailers that continues to underperform. Despite a price-to-earnings ratio of 11 and a price-to-sales ratio of only 0.39, the struggling retailer is battling pressure on both earnings and profit margins. In the third quarter financial report for fiscal year 2026, Target’s same-store sales fell by 2.7%, and management has lowered the full-year earnings per share forecast for fiscal year 2025 to between 7 and 8 dollars. After the conference call on November 19, analysts downgraded the stock’s rating 11 times.
Deere (NYSE: DE)
Agricultural machinery company Deere (NYSE: DE) is one of the traditional industries most impacted by the Trump trade war. Although its Q4 revenue and EPS for FY 2025 exceeded market expectations, the company's performance guidance is very conservative due to estimated pre-tax tariffs expected to bring losses exceeding $1.2 billion in 2026, coupled with the agricultural crisis in the American Midwest, leaving Deere facing many negative news as it enters 2026.
In the past six weeks, the stock attempted to rebound, but momentum seems to have weakened. Following an earlier death cross, the 200-day moving average has become a strong resistance level, keeping the stock price below the low opening point when the company released its Q3 FY 2025 financial report in August. Another warning signal is the MACD indicator, which has again declined after nearly two months of rising.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA)
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) stock price fluctuations have always been dramatic, and recently the challenge of overvaluation and competitive pressure has resurfaced. TSLA's P/E ratio exceeds 300 times, with a price-to-sales ratio over 15 times, and free cash flow valuation reaching 200 times. Tesla's current P/E ratio is at a very high level, reflecting the market's high expectations for its future growth, which also means that the stock price has relatively harsh requirements for earnings performance. Such valuations are typically accompanied by larger stock price fluctuations.
Tesla's European car sales continue to plummet, and BYD has become a strong competitor in the Chinese electric vehicle market. The expiration of tax credits for electric vehicles in the U.S. and the reduction of emission standards have also had adverse effects on the industry. Analysts believe Tesla now needs to rely on developing artificial intelligence technology to boost its stock price, but the development of artificial intelligence also faces challenges, with Google's Waymo far ahead of RoboTaxi, and Grok performing no better compared to ChatGPT and Gemini.
Tesla's stock price may be hitting a new resistance level near the 50-day moving average. Since April, the stock has not significantly fallen below this level, but now a potential double top pattern has formed, and investors are looking for signs of weakening upward momentum. If the stock price fails to break through the 50-day moving average or the double top pattern, the next movement is likely to be downward.
UPS (NYSE: UPS)
UPS (NYSE: UPS) may be quite attractive from a valuation perspective, but this $80 billion shipping giant is lagging behind its competitor FedEx. Tariff policies have impacted all shipping and courier companies, but the removal of minimum exemption clauses has brought logistics challenges to UPS, forcing it to invest significant resources to address them.
UPS stock attempted to break through in October, but quickly encountered resistance near the 200-day moving average. The simple moving average (SMA) for 50-day and 200-day SMA continues to consolidate; however, this price level remains blocked, putting greater pressure on buyers. Other technical indicators also point downward. Although the stock price failed to break through resistance, the relative strength index (RSI) is approaching overbought territory, and the moving average convergence/divergence (MACD) shows that upward momentum is at its lowest point since August. For a stock that has fallen 20% year-to-date, multiple technical resistances are often bad news, and this does not yet account for any macroeconomic pressures.
Vistra Corp Energy and Utilities (NYSE: VST)
Energy stocks saw a significant surge due to the data center boom, but returns have begun to diminish, and the once-vibrant Vistra (NYSE: VST) now appears sluggish with unclear prospects. The company announced its Q3 2025 financial results on November 6, with profits far below expectations and revenue down over 23%. As winter deepens, fluctuations in natural gas prices may exert pressure on Vistra's earnings; currently, the stock's P/E ratio is 60 times, with a price-to-book ratio of 3.3 times and a price-to-sales ratio of 18 times.
Moreover, VST's stock price trend is currently one of the worst among large energy companies. There are currently three major technical resistances, including breaking below the 50-day moving average and the MACD indicator showing a bearish crossover. The relative strength index (RSI) has also shown a declining trend since September, indicating that VST's momentum is fading faster than its stock price. If the stock price falls below the 200-day moving average, it could create strong downward pressure on the stock price.
In this article, Benzinga analysts say that Tesla and several other stocks could be considered for sale before the arrival of the New Year in 2026, first appearing in Chain News ABMedia.
