A stock with low volatility can be reassuring, but it doesn’t always mean strong long-term performance. Investors who prioritize stability may miss out on higher-reward opportunities elsewhere.
Choosing the wrong investments can cause you to fall behind, which is why we started StockStory - to separate the winners from the losers. Keeping that in mind, here is one low-volatility stock providing safe-and-steady growth and two that may not deliver the returns you need.
Two Stocks to Sell:
Nature's Sunshine (NATR)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.71
Started on a kitchen table in Utah, Nature’s Sunshine (NASDAQ: NATR) manufactures and sells nutritional and personal care products.
Why Are We Hesitant About NATR?
- Products fail to spark excitement with consumers, as seen in its flat sales over the last three years
- Modest revenue base of $460.8 million gives it less fixed cost leverage and fewer distribution channels than larger companies
- Earnings per share were flat over the last three years and fell short of the peer group average
At $13.48 per share, Nature's Sunshine trades at 17.9x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including NATR in your portfolio.
Hilltop Holdings (HTH)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.66
Transformed from a residential communities business to a financial services powerhouse in 2007, Hilltop Holdings (NYSE: HTH) is a Texas-based financial holding company that provides banking, broker-dealer, and mortgage origination services.
Why Is HTH Risky?
- Net interest income stagnated over the last five years and signal the need for new growth strategies
- Projected 34.1 percentage point efficiency ratio increase over the next year signals it will struggle to adjust its fixed costs as sales fall
- Performance over the past five years shows each sale was less profitable as its earnings per share dropped by 13.1% annually, worse than its revenue
Hilltop Holdings’s stock price of $32.30 implies a valuation ratio of 0.9x forward P/B. To fully understand why you should be careful with HTH, check out our full research report (it’s free for active Edge members).
One Stock to Watch:
Boston Scientific (BSX)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.85
Founded in 1979 with a mission to advance less-invasive medicine, Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) develops and manufactures medical devices used in minimally invasive procedures across cardiovascular, urological, neurological, and gastrointestinal specialties.
Why Is BSX on Our Radar?
- Core business can prosper without any help from acquisitions as its organic revenue growth averaged 16.2% over the past two years
- Incremental sales over the last five years have been highly profitable as its earnings per share increased by 19.9% annually, topping its revenue gains
- Free cash flow margin increased by 4.3 percentage points over the last five years, giving the company more capital to invest or return to shareholders
Boston Scientific is trading at $100.82 per share, or 30.4x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free for active Edge members.
Stocks We Like Even More
Fresh US-China trade tensions just tanked stocks—but strong bank earnings are fueling a sharp rebound. Don’t miss the bounce.
Don’t let fear keep you from great opportunities and take a look at Top 6 Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today
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