3 Volatile Stocks We Approach with Caution

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.

These stocks can be a rollercoaster, and StockStory is here to guide you through the ups and downs. Keeping that in mind, here are three volatile stocks to avoid and some better opportunities instead.

iHeartMedia (IHRT)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 2.12

Occasionally featuring celebrity hosts like Ryan Seacrest on its shows, iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) is a leading multimedia company renowned for its extensive network of radio stations, digital platforms, and live events across the globe.

Why Do We Think IHRT Will Underperform?

1. Products and services fail to spark excitement with consumers, as seen in its flat sales over the last two years
2. Waning returns on capital from an already weak starting point displays the inefficacy of management’s past and current investment decisions
3. Short cash runway increases the probability of a capital raise that dilutes existing shareholders

iHeartMedia’s stock price of $2.39 implies a valuation ratio of 0.5x forward EV-to-EBITDA. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why IHRT doesn’t pass our bar.

Jabil (JBL)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.52

With manufacturing facilities spanning the globe from China to Mexico to the United States, Jabil (NYSE:JBL) provides electronics design, manufacturing, and supply chain solutions to companies across various industries, from healthcare to automotive to cloud computing.

Why Does JBL Give Us Pause?

1. Annual sales declines of 10.1% for the past two years show its products and services struggled to connect with the market during this cycle
2. Earnings growth over the last two years fell short of the peer group average as its EPS only increased by 1.6% annually
3. Low free cash flow margin of 3.1% for the last five years gives it little breathing room, constraining its ability to self-fund growth or return capital to shareholders

At $214 per share, Jabil trades at 20.8x forward P/E. If you’re considering JBL for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

XPO (XPO)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.78

Owning a mobile game simulating freight operations for the Tour de France, XPO (NYSE:XPO) is a transportation company specializing in expedited shipping services.

Why Do We Avoid XPO?

1. Customers postponed purchases of its products and services this cycle as its revenue declined by 6.5% annually over the last five years
2. Flat earnings per share over the last two years underperformed the sector average
3. Free cash flow margin shrank by 7.2 percentage points over the last five years, suggesting the company is consuming more capital to stay competitive

XPO is trading at $137.43 per share, or 33.8x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than XPO.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

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Take advantage of the rebound by checking out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. 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).

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