After multiple years of US outperformance, international stocks could catch up a bit in 2025. The MSCI World ex USA Index has gained roughly 5% through late June and the MSCI Europe Index has gained 8%, versus a roughly 4% price return for the S&P 500.1
Investors that have exposure to international stocks have benefited thus far this year from a combination of favorable currency movements, signs of shifting capital flows tied to improved international investor sentiment and renewed spending by several global economies, and relatively attractive valuations, among other factors.
For example, the US Dollar Index has declined more than 10% year to date.1 If this trend persists, it may support the continued flow of assets toward international investments—since a weaker dollar boosts the value of foreign earnings for US-based investors through currency translation.
Additionally, the US had benefited from significant foreign capital investment for much of the past 2 decades based on analysis from Fidelity's Asset Allocation Research Team, but the winds of change may be in the air. Germany (the largest European economy) recently ratified a comprehensive investment package totaling more than $1 trillion in domestic spending over the next decade for infrastructure, clean energy projects, and defense spending. And other European countries may follow suit, leading to increased public investments in defense, infrastructure, climate initiatives, and technological innovation at home, which may reduce the flow of available global capital to US shores.
And valuations remain a reason to be cautious about US stocks. Fidelity research reveals that non-US stocks (particularly in Europe) are trading at about 30% lower price-to-earnings ratios compared with US stocks. US stocks continue to be more expensive versus international developed markets and emerging markets—as US stocks have been trading at the high end of their historical valuation range.
With this backdrop in mind, here are 3 screens featuring international investments to consider.
International growth
If you are interested in exploring international stocks that have exhibited strong growth characteristics, here are the top 5 results of a screen looking at depository receipt stocks with a forward EPS long-term growth rate (3 to 5 years) of at least 14.6%, cash-flow growth rate (5 years) of at least 20.1%, and a 90-day average daily volume of at least 726K, sorted by market cap, as of June 26, 2025:
- Taiwan Semiconductor (
) - KE Holdings (
) - Genmab (
) - Futu Holdings (
) - Harmony Gold Mining (
)
An important aspect of utilizing screens is to consider if any of the results that you are interested in align with your specific goals and make sense within the context of your portfolio. With an international screen such as this one, you’ll want to fully understand the unique characteristics and risks of foreign companies. You’ll want to ensure that opportunities like these are appropriate for your goals and risk tolerance.
International value
If you are interested in exploring stocks that might offer better value, here are the top 5 results of a screen looking for stocks with a low price-to-earnings ratio (between 0 and 15.0 using next year’s earnings estimate), a low price-to-cash-flow ratio (between 0 and 10.2), a low price-to-book ratio (1.3 and below), a low price-to-sales ratio (0 to 1.29), and a 90-day average daily volume of at least 726K, sorted by market cap, as of June 26, 2025:
- TotalEnergies (
) - Banco Santander (
) - Petroleo Brasileiro (
) - Honda Motor (
) - Vale (
)
After you run a screen, you should evaluate the results and how they might impact your investment mix. For example, a consideration when adding individual stocks to your portfolio is concentration risk within a particular sector or industry. Most of these results are energy and materials companies. You'd want to think about how adding any of these stocks might impact your overall investment mix and exposure to an individual sector.
International income
If you are interested in exploring stocks that feature relatively strong yields, here are the top 5 results for a screen looking for stocks with a high dividend yield (3.5% and greater), a dividend growth rate of at least 9.7% (5-year average), and a 90-day average daily volume of at least 610K, sorted by market cap, as of June 26, 2025:
- Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Aregentaria (
) - Equinor (
) - ING Groep (
) - Petroleo Brasileiro (
) - United Microelectronics (
)
Evaluating if the results are in line with what you might expect is another screening tactic to utilize. If the output isn't generally what you expected and it doesn't align with your goals and risk tolerance, you may want to consider adjusting the filters or running a different screen.
Stock screen tips
Some screening criteria may be more relevant for certain sectors, industries, and companies. With experience, you can adjust filters to set up screens that produce the type of results you may be looking for. You can also look at preset expert screens if you’d like to see how filters can be set up.
Regardless of your screening approach, more research is needed to determine if any screen result is right for you. You should fully understand the risks involved, and each investing opportunity should be considered within the context of a well-diversified investment strategy that conforms to your specific time horizon, objectives, and risk parameters.