Low Beta Stocks Beta is the a calculation that measures the relative volatility of a stock in correlation to a particular standard. For U.S. stocks that standard is usually, but not always, the S&P 500. Beta is a form of regression analysis and it can be useful for investors regardless of their risk tolerance. Beta is considered one of the few data points that can be beneficial for practitioners of both fundamental analysis and technical analysis. This page lists stocks that have unusually low beta calculations, meaning there is little correlation between the price moves of these stocks and the S&P 500. Learn more about low beta stocks. Country USA (NYSE & NASDAQ) United States(NYSE & NASDAQ) United States(All Exchanges) Canada United Kingdom Europe Australia Sector All Sectors Aerospace Auto/Tires/Trucks Basic Materials Business Services Computer and Technology Construction Consumer Discretionary Consumer Goods Consumer Staples Finance Industrial Products Medical Miscellaneous Multi-Sector Conglomerates Oils/Energy Retail/Wholesale Services Transportation Utilities All Market Caps Large Cap ($10B+) Medium Cap ($2B-$10B) Small Cap (<$2B) Market Cap MarketRank™ evaluates a company based on dividend strength, earnings, valuation, analysts forecasts, and more.Available with a MarketBeat All Access SubscriptionMarketRank™Upgrade to All Access to use the All Ranks Filter Media sentiment refers to the percentage of positive news stories versus negative news stories a company has received in the past week.Available with a MarketBeat All Access SubscriptionMedia SentimentUpgrade to All Access to use the All Sentiments Filter Analyst consensus is the average investment recommendation among Wall Street research analysts.Available with a MarketBeat All Access SubscriptionAnalyst ConsensusUpgrade to All Access to use the All Ratings Filter Export to Excel CompanyCurrent PriceBetaPE RatioMarket CapVolumeAverage VolumeIndicator(s)PVPrimavera Capital Acquisition$4.05-0.2%0.0112.27$217.69 million7,459103,184Gap UpLCAAL Catterton Asia Acquisition$10.670.01533.77$308.90 million1,06816,783Short Interest ↓Positive NewsOPAMagnum Opus Acquisition$10.690.0117.52$123.99 million4452Short Interest ↓AMRKA-Mark Precious Metals$29.33-1.4%0.024.62$684.56 million205,330342,234Short Interest ↑BLEUbleuacacia$10.500.0245.65$89.04 million1231News CoverageFICVFrontier Investment$10.450.0274.64$80.78 million062Short Interest ↓News Coverage Get the Latest News and Ratings for Your StocksEnter your email address below to receive the latest headlines and analysts' recommendations for your stocks with our free daily email newsletter. SSBKSouthern States Bancshares$22.59-0.6%0.036.01$199.47 million6,53912,621Short Interest ↓News CoveragePositive NewsCIZNCitizens$10.50+1.9%0.039.13$58.91 million11,0686,759Short Interest ↓News CoverageOSUROraSure Technologies$5.93-1.3%0.0310.22$435.38 million436,635577,231News CoverageGOGrocery Outlet$28.85-0.3%0.0540.63$2.85 billion749,698962,391Short Interest ↑PROCProcaps Group$3.62+1.2%0.055.48$408.41 million9,4894,929Positive NewsENCPEnergem$11.120.05101.10$37.81 million0388Positive NewsTDCXTDCX$5.91-1.7%0.0610.55$856.47 million41,489285,962Short Interest ↓Positive NewsCULLCullman Bancorp$10.500.0619.81$77.49 million1613,585Short Interest ↑ZTOZTO Express (Cayman)$24.17+0.7%0.0616.90$14.72 billion1.65 million3.05 millionAnalyst UpgradeCOCOVita Coco$26.04-2.1%0.0751.06$1.47 billion420,209711,226Short Interest ↑REFIChicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance$14.72+0.1%0.077.25$267.46 million59,079112,803News CoveragePLMRPalomar$50.75+1.2%0.0822.36$1.26 billion390,604114,488Positive NewsHigh Trading VolumeFANHFanhua$7.21-1.9%0.0811.27$389.56 million32,98134,509Short Interest ↑News CoverageINSWInternational Seaways$45.00-0.2%0.093.39$2.20 billion521,320442,863Analyst ReportPBHCPathfinder Bancorp$13.800.097.46$64.72 million103,574Short Interest ↑GLDICredit Suisse X-Links Gold Shares Covered Call ETN$133.96-1.0%0.10171.79$53.58 million2,4934,259Short Interest ↓Positive NewsCFSBCFSB Bancorp$7.00-0.2%0.1030.44$46.41 million5051,298Short Interest ↑OBTOrange County Bancorp$43.17-3.5%0.118.32$243.91 million2,49914,697Short Interest ↓Positive NewsCHTChunghwa Telecom$35.94-0.2%0.1122.75$27.88 billion111,915130,621Short Interest ↑STERSterling Check$12.62-6.4%0.11631.00$1.22 billion308,892316,749News CoverageGap DownFSBCFive Star Bancorp$20.06-0.4%0.126.78$346.24 million22,03418,036Short Interest ↓Positive NewsTRTootsie Roll Industries$29.86-0.8%0.1226.24$2.09 billion84,391101,691Positive NewsCLSTCatalyst Bancorp$12.06+5.9%0.12120.60$59.22 million8,7224,827Short Interest ↑News CoverageHMNFHMN Financial$19.130.1311.46$85.89 million1,4463,473Short Interest ↑Positive NewsPNTPOINT Biopharma Global$6.67-1.6%0.137.67$705.49 million473,088552,212News CoveragePositive NewsBIIBBiogen$257.01-0.3%0.1313.99$37.22 billion887,737763,916News CoverageTNPTsakos Energy Navigation$20.78-1.3%0.141.73$613.22 million256,558296,757Short Interest ↑FCALFirst Trust California Municipal High Income ETF$47.24+0.2%0.15124.32$144.08 million15,70616,356Short Interest ↓Positive NewsVFSVinFast Auto$12.50-0.5%0.1569.45$264.13 million4.67 millionN/AGap DownHigh Trading VolumeARTNAArtesian Resources$41.99+0.3%0.1524.41$431.24 million37,25445,267Short Interest ↑IGICInternational General Insurance$11.28-1.7%0.154.51$530.54 million46,71485,979Short Interest ↓News CoveragePositive NewsCOGlobal Cord Blood$1.240.161.94$150.72 million4,508216,519Gap DownMGYRMagyar Bancorp$10.25+5.7%0.168.40$68.27 million1,2433,368News CoverageGap UpNAPADuckhorn Portfolio$10.26-7.7%0.1617.10$1.18 billion2.12 million688,290Analyst ReportNews CoverageHigh Trading VolumeGLBSGlobus Maritime$1.84+10.8%0.1714.15$37.87 million853,109315,197Analyst ReportGap UpHigh Trading VolumeIHTInnSuites Hospitality Trust$1.27-4.5%0.1721.17$11.44 million3,01137,027Analyst ReportPositive NewsOVBCOhio Valley Banc$24.25+0.8%0.178.06$115.92 million4151,023Analyst ReportShort Interest ↑News CoverageNATNordic American Tankers$4.12+1.7%0.177.23$860.26 million4.96 million2.59 millionShort Interest ↑News CoverageBNTXBioNTech$108.64+6.5%0.176.09$26.18 billion1.19 million482,701Short Interest ↑News CoverageHigh Trading VolumePOCIPrecision Optics$5.95-0.8%0.19297.65$36.12 million16,5883,450News CoverageGap DownHigh Trading VolumeREGNRegeneron Pharmaceuticals$822.96-1.4%0.1921.75$89.34 billion409,771383,792Analyst ReportNews CoveragePositive NewsCHMGChemung Financial$39.61-0.1%0.196.81$186.96 million3,7296,027Short Interest ↑News CoverageHRLHormel Foods$38.030.2023.62$20.78 billion2.00 million2.19 millionDividend AnnouncementShort Interest ↑PPIHPerma-Pipe International$8.17+3.9%0.2013.85$65.85 million5,1567,166Short Interest ↑Gap DownBAFNBayFirst Financial$11.23-0.7%0.2033.01$46.02 million8,3424,428Short Interest ↑News CoverageFCNFTI Consulting$178.41-2.0%0.2127.16$6.07 billion171,383172,743Positive NewsCIACitizens$2.85-4.7%0.2115.00$141.42 million124,95534,669High Trading VolumeJTAIJet.AI$3.23+7.1%0.2146.07$28.12 million58,30969,316Upcoming EarningsPositive NewsCLBKColumbia Financial$15.71+0.8%0.2126.18$1.66 billion104,493112,592Short Interest ↑GLGTD$0.140.221.19$27.00 million2.27 million11.23 millionShort Interest ↑News CoverageSELFGlobal Self Storage$4.86+0.8%0.2218.69$54.14 million14,68521,154Short Interest ↑LANCLancaster Colony$165.03-0.1%0.2340.95$4.54 billion98,044140,256Short Interest ↓Positive NewsEIGEmployers$39.95-2.3%0.238.72$1.04 billion132,379142,846Analyst DowngradeNews CoverageUTMDUtah Medical Products$86.00-2.4%0.2318.14$312.18 million14,50513,744News CoveragePositive NewsBOWLBowlero$9.62+1.1%0.2332.07$1.56 billion2.13 million2.52 millionShort Interest ↑HAPPHappiness Development Group$3.210.236.69$22.33 million4,10714,340Gap UpMSVBMid-Southern Bancorp$9.91-1.3%0.2316.52$28.54 million6001,051VIRTVirtu Financial$17.270.2412.70$2.81 billion704,5791.04 millionPositive NewsGISGeneral Mills$63.99-0.2%0.2415.61$37.20 billion5.33 million4.66 millionDividend AnnouncementShort Interest ↓YMMFull Truck Alliance$7.04+1.0%0.2432.00$7.78 billion2.72 million3.73 millionGap UpFROFrontline$18.78+0.9%0.245.06$4.18 billion4.33 million2.67 millionOptions VolumeNews CoverageAAMEAtlantic American$1.93+4.9%0.25193.00$39.37 million1,3334,034Analyst ReportShort Interest ↑News CoverageGap UpATHMAutohome$30.35-0.5%0.2613.49$3.81 billion425,887340,375Analyst DowngradeShort Interest ↑UBCPUnited Bancorp$11.55+0.3%0.267.55$68.26 million1,4112,556Short Interest ↑SDPISuperior Drilling Products$0.80-1.2%0.268.89$24.32 million86,06465,635News CoverageJFU9F$2.90+2.3%0.263.16$34.18 million9293,544Short Interest ↑News CoverageSAFTSafety Insurance Group$68.19-0.5%0.2728.41$1.01 billion66,93351,266Positive NewsECBKECB Bancorp$10.980.2739.21$100.77 million15,0427,268Short Interest ↓High Trading VolumeQDELQuidelOrtho$73.04+1.6%0.27110.67$4.88 billion466,306534,419Short Interest ↓News CoverageFVCBFVCBankcorp$12.81+9.3%0.2714.90$228.04 million202,92728,735Short Interest ↓Positive NewsHigh Trading VolumeNATHNathan's Famous$70.66-1.6%0.2814.54$288.29 million3,4746,057Analyst DowngradeLRNStride$45.03-0.8%0.2815.21$1.94 billion282,928525,455CLXClorox$131.06+1.9%0.28110.14$16.23 billion2.80 million1.33 millionAnalyst RevisionHigh Trading VolumeEQCEquity Commonwealth$18.37-0.3%0.2932.23$2.02 billion833,805948,919Positive NewsHSYHershey$200.08-0.9%0.2923.02$40.91 billion1.41 million1.29 millionInsider SellingESSAESSA Bancorp$15.01+0.5%0.297.39$156.10 million14,03123,196Short Interest ↓CTRACoterra Energy$27.05-1.7%0.296.78$20.42 billion5.00 million5.42 millionAnalyst ReportInsider SellingNews CoverageJBSSJohn B. Sanfilippo & Son$98.80-0.9%0.3018.30$1.14 billion61,66783,737Short Interest ↓News CoverageDGDollar General$105.80+0.4%0.3010.84$23.22 billion3.73 million5.24 millionAnalyst ReportTDSACabana Target Drawdown 5 ETF$20.510.3014.52$16.40 million2,93111,623Dividend CutEx-DividendSWKHSWK$15.75+0.1%0.3011.25$197.51 million2,7727,398PFISPeoples Financial Services$40.10-4.0%0.308.00$284.31 million12,50921,234Short Interest ↓OFEDOconee Federal Financial$12.75-1.2%0.3020.56$71.52 million200461News CoverageGap DownVABKVirginia National Bankshares$30.35-5.0%0.306.70$162.98 million7,5958,366Short Interest ↓News CoverageOCUPOcuphire Pharma$3.35-3.7%0.313.99$70.38 million768,088382,120News CoverageHigh Trading VolumeOPOFOld Point Financial$18.27+4.2%0.319.04$92.08 million9,1834,082Analyst ReportNews CoverageHigh Trading VolumeCZFSCitizens Financial Services$47.92-0.8%0.3110.52$225.22 million29,64721,415Short Interest ↑News CoverageGap UpCFFIC&F Financial$53.60-2.0%0.316.29$181.70 million4,7826,936News CoverageLLYEli Lilly and Company$537.13-1.3%0.3274.71$509.89 billion2.97 million2.75 millionGRVYGravity$69.00-0.6%0.324.90$479.55 million11,97319,288Short Interest ↓OPXSOptex Systems$4.16+0.6%0.3216.62$28.09 million2,7309,398Short Interest ↓Gap UpICCHICC$16.100.328.01$50.60 million413,144News CoverageSPOKSpok$14.27-2.3%0.328.20$284.97 million137,780229,918Short Interest ↓Positive NewsGCBCGreene County Bancorp$24.05+1.1%0.3213.25$409.57 million11,27312,734Short Interest ↑News Coverage What Are Low Beta Stocks Many retail investors assume that you can’t predict the stock market. And since you can’t predict it, they assume that investing in stocks carries a certain amount of risk. Well, as it turns out, there is a way to assess the risk of a particular security: it’s called beta. Low beta stocks are those securities that carry the lowest amount of risk. How to Use Low Beta Stocks to Minimize Risk and Increase Returns What Is the Beta of a Stock? How to Calculate Beta Low Beta Strategy How to Reduce Risk in Your Portfolio Is It Smart to Invest in Low Beta Stocks? Beta is essentially a measure of a stock’s volatility. Risk level is one of the most important stats to analyze in terms of investing in stocks. A comparison of a stock’s risk factor to your own level of risk tolerance will help you know whether to buy, sell, or avoid a certain security. Beta is the number that will help you understand a stock’s level of risk and make those decisions. What Is the Beta of a Stock? In the simplest terms, beta is a tool that compares how volatile a stock is in comparison to the overall market. The stock market is the “control” and has a definitive benchmark beta of 1.0, while each individual security is the “variable,” with a beta that varies in terms of how much the stock moves around. A stock that is more volatile than the market has a beta of more than 1.0, while a stock that is less volatile than the market has a beta of less than 1.0. If you’re a short-term trader riding the market waves and looking at stock market gainers, stock beta can let you know which securities might be the riskiest—then you can decide whether or not to get involved. As you can see from this explanation, risky stocks are not the only ones that carry risk. Every one of the individual stocks can be viewed as a risky stock to some degree, even if the degree is negligible. Even in bull markets, when it seems like the sky’s the limit forever, it’s impossible for a stock to mirror the benchmark. How to Calculate Beta The beta of a stock is calculated using regression analysis. In short, regression analysis is all about comparing one stable variable with other changing variables. The formula for calculating a stock’s beta is simple in theory—beta is found by dividing covariance by variance. Covariance represents how similar or dissimilar two numbers are in their movements—in this case, a stock is being compared to the market. Positive numbers indicate that their movement is similar. Negative numbers indicate that their movements are different. Variance represents how much the “control” variable bounces around in comparison to its mean—its normal state. To keep it short and sweet, a stock’s beta is calculated with the intention of assessing how similar or divergent a stock’s movement is in comparison to the market—and thereby determining its volatility. Beta, in turn, can be worked into a complex equation to create a Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). This equation helps calculate the expected return of an asset, using its risk-free rate as a starting point (a hypothetical rate of return involving no risk). Beyond beta, other formulas, such as the Sharpe Ratio—which uses standard deviation—can help investors determine how much additional yield they’ll get for every increase per unit of risk. Then there is tracking error, which helps investors understand how much performance has deviated from the intended benchmark. As you can see, beta is the gateway stat for an in-depth, computational way of growing equity through leveraging statistical opportunities in the stock market. Low Beta Strategy Low Beta Strategy focuses on investing in securities that have a low beta. These are stocks issued by companies in a sector like consumer goods, food, and utilities. This type of asset tends to avoid wild fluctuations because its line of business is both necessary and consistent. For example, utility companies exert a relative monopoly over their local region and face little competition in their sector. Low Beta stocks are safer in terms of price when the market is down—they match the market, and don’t wildly plummet while the market is coasting. However, when the market is up, the same logic applies: these stocks gain less than some of their more volatile counterparts. Some investment strategies actually involving investing in both low and high beta stocks simultaneously. Stocks with a higher beta—which can experience greater price fluctuations—can present opportunities for big gains through short-term trading of these volatility stocks. To offset potential losses, the investor will also buy into stocks with a lower beta and hold onto them for longer periods of time. This statistical arbitrage strategy is referred to as the bet against beta. How to Reduce Risk in Your Portfolio Unfortunately, beta is not a catchall indicator that can prevent losing your earnings to risky investments. While beta is a mathematical measure of how volatile a stock is in comparison to the market, it says nothing about other factors, like how a company operates, its debt, or current events that can affect its operations—such as its potential in regard to future earnings. For example, a company in a stable industry like utilities can be poorly run, on the brink of bankruptcy, and facing a cataclysmic shutdown due to a recent energy-related event—but because it’s historically moved in close tandem with the overall market, it’s beta is low. Doesn’t sound like a good investment, does it? One way to reduce risk in your portfolio is to diversify your investments. In terms of stocks, this can mean diversifying your portfolio through a range of companies and industries. However, if you want to truly minimize risk, the majority of your portfolio should be invested in stable, established, non-speculative securities, and preferably ones that pay good dividends or offer opportunities for growth. One of the easiest ways to avoid risk is to invest in mutual funds or ETFs. This type of fund pools money from a number of investors. With a larger amount of money to play with, mutual fund managers can spread it out over a broader range of securities than each individual investor would be able to buy on their own. You can also diversify risk by investing in different types of asset classes. Between stocks, bonds, commodities, real estate, and business ownership, there are a number of vehicles for producing cash flow. A capital asset like a paid-off rental property can even produce free cash flow, unencumbered by expenses (this is every investor’s golden egg). If your money is diversified, when one of your investments takes a hit, you won’t have to lose all your eggs—you’ve placed them in different baskets. While much ink has been spilled about which type of asset can consistently outperform the others in terms of growth, everyone can agree that at different times one asset outperforms the others; they all carry a degree of historical volatility (even real estate). If you do want to pick out which stock comprises your portfolio, another strategy for reducing risk is to invest in established, stable companies—but these companies are stable beyond their beta score. Large blue-chip companies, like those you’ll find in Warren Buffet’s portfolio, have been around for decades. They are well run, well-financed, and have low amounts of debt. Beta says nothing about the degree of competence with which a company is run, although competently-run, long-standing companies usually do have a lower beta score. Even if you’re trying to avoid too much risk, most financiers would agree that it’s okay to take a small percentage of your portfolio (financial experts such as Benjamin Graham have suggested no more than 5%) and look at cheap stocks to buy. These stocks might be riskier, but they can also provide good returns if they work out. If they don’t, your losses will be marginal. Is It Smart to Invest in Low Beta Stocks? While beta is used to analyze risk, it does have some shortcomings. As mentioned, beta is a comparative statistic that says nothing about how a company is run. It’s been described by analysts as a sort of rearview mirror, reflecting what’s behind, but not necessarily what’s ahead (which, by contrast, is very impacted by the degree of managerial competence and current events). That said, beta can be a good tool for short-game investors looking to minimize risk. For long-term investors, it’s not necessarily that useful. Moreover, beta is a number that says nothing about a stock’s price movement in terms of whether it’s going up or down. All beta tells you is a stock’s volatility relative to the market. This is especially problematic in light of the fact that investors, especially short-term traders, make their moves based on stock prices. However, in conjunction with other stats that give a more complete picture of a stock and its performance, beta can be a useful tool for assessing a security’s level of risk—for short term investors. Long-term investors will want to get a more complete picture of a company, how it’s run, and its level of debt before making an investment. Investors should not just look at a stock’s beta, but also examine their own level of risk tolerance. Younger investors building a retirement portfolio can afford to take on more risks. After all, they have decades of investment ahead of them. Older investors nearing retirement want to avoid risk and do what they can to stabilize their portfolio as much as possible since it will become a source of income. There are many strategies for investing in stocks, and they all depend on the investor's preferred mode of gain. A dividend investing strategy can turn rivulets of pennies into a mighty dividend stream, which is great for investors who want passive income. Day trading is great for investors who are skilled enough to leverage swings in the most volatile stocks at the drop of a hat. Other investors might find themselves somewhere between the long game and the short game, figuring out the best growth stocks to scoop up and sell at a profit weeks or months later. Institutional investors may make a beta calculation as part of their equity and growth strategy, but it’s not the only tool they leverage for assessing how to respond to systematic risk. They do an in-depth micro and macro analysis of stats like market capitalization and general market volatility. Investors also perform fundamental and financial analysis of a company to consider future growth and dividend yield. Low Beta Stocks Beta tells you how risky a stock is by comparing its activity to that of the market. It’s important to combine financial signifiers like beta and even professional analyst ratings with fundamental analysis of a company. Alternatively, you can turn over investment decisions to a money manager. Assessing the balance between risk and reward as it relates to financial gain is the bread and butter of short-term trading. But if short-term trading is not for you, you may consider other strategies such as searching for dividend-paying stocks, the snowballing equity of which can be rolled back into more dividend stocks. Retail investors can also piggyback invest by mimicking the portfolio of established investors with a track record of success. These strategies can be a much easier way for the average investor to increase their stock market earnings than attempting to leverage stock market beta. However, if you are looking to leverage short positions through day trading or similarly short-term asset growth, beta can be a useful tool for determining the risk of a particular security. 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