Low-volatility stocks may offer stability, but that often comes at the cost of slower growth and the upside potential of more dynamic companies.
Choosing the wrong investments can cause you to fall behind, which is why we started StockStory - to separate the winners from the losers. That said, here are two low-volatility stocks that could succeed under all market conditions and one that may not keep up.
One Industrials Stock to Sell:
Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.61
Widely known for its success in the paint industry, Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW) is a manufacturer of paints, coatings, and related products.
Why Does SHW Fall Short?
- Absence of organic revenue growth over the past two years suggests it may have to lean into acquisitions to drive its expansion
- Earnings growth over the last two years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 4.2% annually
- Free cash flow margin dropped by 2.9 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
Sherwin-Williams’s stock price of $357.62 implies a valuation ratio of 29.3x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why SHW doesn’t pass our bar.
Two Industrials Stocks to Watch:
ESCO (ESE)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.85
A developer of the communication systems used in the Batmobile of “The Dark Knight,” ESCO (NYSE: ESE) is a provider of engineered components for the aerospace, defense, and utility sectors.
Why Is ESE a Good Business?
- Backlog has averaged 29% growth over the past two years, showing it has a pipeline of unfulfilled orders that will support revenue in the future
- Operating margin improvement of 4.3 percentage points over the last five years demonstrates its ability to scale efficiently
- Incremental sales over the last two years have been highly profitable as its earnings per share increased by 30.9% annually, topping its revenue gains
At $213.65 per share, ESCO trades at 27.5x forward P/E. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free.
CACI (CACI)
Rolling One-Year Beta: 0.44
Founded to commercialize SIMSCRIPT, CACI International (NYSE: CACI) offers defense, intelligence, and IT solutions to support national security and government transformation efforts.
Why Are We Fans of CACI?
- Average backlog growth of 11.3% over the past two years shows it has a steady sales pipeline that will drive future orders
- Financial risk is minimized through its long-term operating margin of 8.6%
- Share buybacks catapulted its annual earnings per share growth to 20.6%, which outperformed its revenue gains over the last two years
CACI is trading at $607.60 per share, or 21x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.
Stocks We Like Even More
Check out the high-quality names we’ve flagged in our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. 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 Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
