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.

Navigating these stocks isn’t easy, which is why StockStory helps you find Comfort In Chaos. That said, here are three volatile stocks best left to the gamblers and some better opportunities instead.

Denny's (DENN)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.07

Open around the clock, Denny’s (NASDAQ: DENN) is a chain of diner restaurants serving breakfast and traditional American fare.

Why Should You Sell DENN?

1. Weak same-store sales trends over the past two years suggest there may be few opportunities in its core markets to open new restaurants
2. 9 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin over the last year reflects the company’s increased investments to defend its market position
3. High net-debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 5× increases the risk of forced asset sales or dilutive financing if operational performance weakens

Denny's is trading at $4.20 per share, or 7.9x forward P/E. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why DENN doesn’t pass our bar.

REV Group (REVG)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.62

Offering the first full-electric North American fire truck, REV (NYSE: REVG) manufactures and sells specialty vehicles.

Why Are We Hesitant About REVG?

1. Flat sales over the last five years suggest it must find different ways to grow during this cycle
2. High input costs result in an inferior gross margin of 12% that must be offset through higher volumes
3. Operating margin of 3% falls short of the industry average, and the smaller profit dollars make it harder to react to unexpected market developments

REV Group’s stock price of $47.59 implies a valuation ratio of 17x forward P/E. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than REVG.

Kyndryl (KD)

Rolling One-Year Beta: 1.40

Born from IBM's managed infrastructure services business in a 2021 spinoff, Kyndryl (NYSE: KD) is the world's largest IT infrastructure services provider that designs, builds, and manages technology environments for enterprise customers.

Why Are We Wary of KD?

1. Annual sales declines of 6% for the past four years show its products and services struggled to connect with the market during this cycle
2. Low free cash flow margin of 0.3% for the last five years gives it little breathing room, constraining its ability to self-fund growth or return capital to shareholders
3. Negative returns on capital show management lost money while trying to expand the business

At $42.35 per share, Kyndryl trades at 20.3x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with KD, check out our full research report (it’s free).

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

The market surged in 2024 and reached record highs after Donald Trump’s presidential victory in November, but questions about new economic policies are adding much uncertainty for 2025.

While the crowd speculates what might happen next, we’re homing in on the companies that can succeed regardless of the political or macroeconomic environment. Put yourself in the driver’s seat and build a durable portfolio by checking out 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 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-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