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2 safe-and-steady stocks to consider right now and 1 we avoid
Stability is great, but low-volatility stocks may struggle to deliver market-beating returns over time as they sometimes underperform during bull markets.
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 two low-volatility stocks that could offer consistent gains and one that may not keep up.
One stock to sell:
Halliburton (HAL)
Rolling One-Year Beta: -0.23
Behind nearly every oil and gas well drilled worldwide, Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) provides drilling, completion, and production services that help oil and gas companies extract hydrocarbons from underground reservoirs.
Why Is HAL Not Exciting?
- Annual sales growth of 9.5% over the last five years lagged behind its energy upstream and integrated energy peers as its large revenue base made it difficult to generate incremental demand
- Gross margin of 16.8% reflects its high production costs and unfavorable asset base
- Static EBITDA margin over the last five years shows it couldn’t become more efficient
Halliburton’s stock price of $35.06 implies a valuation ratio of 12.1x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why HAL doesn’t pass our bar.
Two stocks to watch:
The Bancorp (TBBK)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.83
Operating behind the scenes of many popular fintech apps and prepaid cards you might use daily, The Bancorp (NASDAQ:TBBK) is a bank holding company that specializes in providing banking services to fintech companies and offering specialty lending products.
Why Do We Like TBBK?
- Annual revenue growth of 18% over the last two years was superb and indicates its market share increased during this cycle
- Efficiency ratio improvement of -6.7 percentage points is projected for next year as the firm achieves greater operating leverage
- Share repurchases over the last five years enabled its annual earnings per share growth of 25% to outpace its revenue gains
At $50.87 per share, The Bancorp trades at 2.8x forward P/B. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Stock Yards Bank (SYBT)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.32
Founded in 1904 in Louisville and named after the city's historic livestock market district, Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT) operates a regional bank providing commercial banking, wealth management, and trust services across Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio.
Why Is SYBT on Our Radar?
- Impressive 16.6% annual net interest income growth over the last five years indicates it’s winning market share this cycle
- Net interest margin grew by 41.7 basis points (100 basis points = 1 percentage point) over the last two years, giving the firm more chips to play with
- Annual tangible book value per share growth of 10.4% over the last five years was superb and indicates its capital strength increased during this cycle
Stock Yards Bank is trading at $78.34 per share, or 1.9x forward P/B. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free.
Stocks we like even more
WHILE YOU’RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don’t just beat the market once. They do it again. And again. Robust revenue growth, rising free cash flow, returns on capital that leave their competition in the dust. The market has already rewarded these businesses.
But our AI platform says the party isn’t over. Find out which 9 stocks made the cut this week — FREE. Get Our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks for Free HERE.
Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,460% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,552% between June 2020 and June 2025). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.