Market swings can be tough to stomach, and volatile stocks often experience exaggerated moves in both directions. While many thrive during risk-on environments, many also struggle to maintain investor confidence when the ride gets bumpy.

At StockStory, our job is to help you avoid costly mistakes and stay on the right side of the trade. Keeping that in mind, here are three volatile stocks to steer clear of and a few better alternatives.

Bandwidth (BAND)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.26

Powering communications for tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and Zoom, Bandwidth (NASDAQ: BAND) provides cloud-based communications software and APIs that enable businesses to embed voice, messaging, and emergency services into their applications and platforms.

Why Does BAND Give Us Pause?

1. Sales trends were unexciting over the last two years as its 12.9% annual growth was below the typical software company
2. Bad unit economics and steep infrastructure costs are reflected in its gross margin of 38.8%, one of the worst among software companies
3. Operating margin improvement of 2.2 percentage points over the last year demonstrates its ability to scale efficiently

At $14.50 per share, Bandwidth trades at 0.5x forward price-to-sales. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why BAND doesn’t pass our bar.

Corning (GLW)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.32

Supplying windows for some of the United States’s earliest spacecraft, Corning (NYSE: GLW) provides glass and other electronic components for the consumer electronics, telecommunications, automotive, and healthcare industries.

Why Are We Hesitant About GLW?

1. Annual sales growth of 6.7% over the last two years lagged behind its industrials peers as its large revenue base made it difficult to generate incremental demand
2. Free cash flow margin dropped by 4.4 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
3. Underwhelming 6.2% return on capital reflects management’s difficulties in finding profitable growth opportunities, and its falling returns suggest its earlier profit pools are drying up

Corning’s stock price of $81.10 implies a valuation ratio of 28x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than GLW.

Delta (DAL)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.27

One of the ‘Big Four’ airlines in the US, Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) is a major global air carrier that serves both business and leisure travelers through its domestic and international flights.

Why Does DAL Worry Us?

1. Demand for its offerings was relatively low as its number of revenue passenger miles has underwhelmed
2. Estimated sales growth of 3.9% for the next 12 months is soft and implies weaker demand
3. Ability to fund investments or reward shareholders with increased buybacks or dividends is restricted by its weak free cash flow margin of 3.6% for the last two years

Delta is trading at $56 per share, or 8.5x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with DAL, check out our full research report (it’s free for active Edge members).

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

The market’s up big this year - but there’s a catch. Just 4 stocks account for half the S&P 500’s entire gain. That kind of concentration makes investors nervous, and for good reason. While everyone piles into the same crowded names, smart investors are hunting quality where no one’s looking - and paying a fraction of the price. Check out the high-quality names we’ve flagged in our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 244% over the last five years (as of June 30, 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% 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

StockStory is growing and hiring equity analyst and marketing roles. Are you a 0 to 1 builder passionate about the markets and AI? See the open roles here.