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 are three low-volatility stocks to steer clear of and a few better alternatives.

Zumiez (ZUMZ)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.87

With store associates called “Zumiez Stash Members”, Zumiez (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is a specialty retailer of street and skate apparel, footwear, and accessories.

Why Is ZUMZ Risky?

1. Lagging same-store sales over the past two years suggest it might have to change its pricing and marketing strategy to stimulate demand
2. Poor expense management has led to operating margin losses
3. Earnings per share have dipped by 57.7% annually over the past six years, which is concerning because stock prices follow EPS over the long term

Zumiez is trading at $11.90 per share, or 45.1x forward P/E. If you’re considering ZUMZ for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Dentsply Sirona (XRAY)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.20

With roots dating back to 1877 when it introduced the first dental electric drill, Dentsply Sirona (NASDAQ: XRAY) manufactures and sells professional dental equipment, technologies, and consumable products used by dentists and specialists worldwide.

Why Do We Avoid XRAY?

1. Weak constant currency growth over the past two years indicates challenges in maintaining its market share
2. Performance over the past five years shows each sale was less profitable as its earnings per share dropped by 7% annually, worse than its revenue
3. Waning returns on capital from an already weak starting point displays the inefficacy of management’s past and current investment decisions

At $16.16 per share, Dentsply Sirona trades at 8.5x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with XRAY, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Amdocs (DOX)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.51

Powering the digital experiences of approximately 400 communications companies worldwide, Amdocs (NASDAQ: DOX) provides software and services that help telecommunications and media companies manage customer relationships, monetize services, and automate network operations.

Why Do We Pass on DOX?

1. New orders were hard to come by as its average backlog growth of 1.6% over the past two years underwhelmed
2. Projected sales decline of 3.5% for the next 12 months points to an even tougher demand environment ahead
3. Capital intensity has ramped up over the last five years as its free cash flow margin decreased by 4.6 percentage points

Amdocs’s stock price of $92.92 implies a valuation ratio of 12.8x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than DOX.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs.

While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our 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 Comfort Systems (+782% 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.