Investment risk is often defined in terms of volatility, but that framing is incomplete. Metrics like beta may identify stocks that have historically swung up or down more than the market, yet they underestimate the risk of permanent capital loss.
Under that lens, it becomes clear how some retail bets on individual stocks can prove disastrous. Consider the case of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (ticker: BBBY), where shareholders were completely wiped out after the company declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and its stock was cancelled.
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For some investors, this level of risk is deemed an acceptable trade-off for the chance to capture a “10-bagger,” a term popularized by famed investment manager Peter Lynch to describe a stock that increases tenfold in price.
The general idea is to pursue asymmetrical opportunities where the downside may be capped at a total loss, but the upside could multiply several times over. If this strategy sounds appealing, three basic risk management principles become essential.
The first is position sizing, meaning investors should keep speculative bets small enough that a total loss will not jeopardize their overall portfolio.
The second is to establish rules in advance for when to take profits or cut losses, since fear and greed can otherwise cloud judgment and prevent disciplined decision-making.
Finally, speculative stocks should not be kept in tax-sheltered accounts like a Roth IRA. While large, deferred gains are attractive in theory, the more likely outcome is a loss, which cannot be claimed as a capital loss in these accounts.
With that in mind, here are six high-risk stocks for aggressive investors to consider today:
— Strategy Inc. (MSTR)
— Tesla Inc. (TSLA)
— Viking Therapeutics Inc. (VKTX)
— CRISPR Therapeutics AG (CRSP)
— Moderna Inc. (MRNA)
— AeroVironment Inc. (AVAV)
Strategy Inc. (MSTR)
“MSTR serves as a leading Bitcoin proxy investment that has demonstrated viability despite the ongoing volatility in Bitcoin prices throughout this year,” says Chris Kline, co-founder and COO of BitcoinIRA. MSTR’s business model is built around issuing convertible debt and preferred shares to buy more Bitcoin, creating a flywheel effect that expands exposure with each round of fundraising.
The stock carries enormous upside and downside potential. Over the past five years, Strategy’s monthly beta was 3.8, making it nearly four times as volatile as the broad market. Elevated volatility also produces rich option premiums, meaning investors long the stock could generate double-digit annualized yields by selling covered calls, though doing so limits upside.
Tesla Inc. (TSLA)
“The expiring electric vehicle tax credit and relative underperformance compared to the rest of the Magnificent 7 stocks in 2025 present a great buying opportunity for TSLA,” says Henry Yoshida, senior vice president at Retired.com. “I think TSLA’s transformative autonomous driving technology will continue to improve, positioning the company as the ultimate long-term winner in this nascent space.”
Like MSTR, Tesla is a highly volatile stock, with a five-year monthly beta of 2.3, and is also a popular covered-call candidate due to its rich option premiums. Still, it remains at its core an automaker, and investors should keep an eye on compressing operating margins and slowing sales, particularly in markets like China where domestic EV makers like BYD Co. Ltd. (OTC: BYDDF) are dominating.
Viking Therapeutics Inc. (VKTX)
Shares of VKTX slid 43% intraday in mid-August after what the market interpreted as disappointing trial results for its experimental weight-loss pill VK2735. While the drug delivered a decent 12.2% average weight loss over three months, a high number of patient dropouts due to side effects unnerved investors. But despite the setback, Viking remains fundamentally solid for a clinical-stage biotech.
VKTX’s most recent quarter showed more than $800 million in cash against less than $1 million of debt, with a trailing-12-month negative operating cash flow of $152.5 million. That gives the company a decent runway to return to the drawing board and refine dosage levels for future trials. Viking could also be a buyout candidate for a larger pharmaceutical company looking to add a weight-loss drug to its pipeline.
[Read: 7 Up and Coming Stocks to Buy in 2025]
CRISPR Therapeutics AG (CRSP)
Cathie Wood, who manages the ARK Invest family of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), has been steadily adding shares of gene-editing biotech CRSP. The stock currently sits in biotech limbo. On one hand, CRISPR has an FDA-approved therapy, Casgevy, for treating sickle cell disease. On the other, it is still developing several in-vivo treatments for clinical trials, which collectively face an uphill battle.
Thanks to a well-timed capital raise during its 2020 stock surge, CRISPR remains financially sound, with $1.7 billion in cash against just $215 million in debt. All eyes are now on Casgevy sales. While revenue is split with collaboration partner Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX), which retains 60% versus CRISPR’s 40% stake, higher-than-expected uptake for Casgevy could meaningfully push shares upward.
Moderna Inc. (MRNA)
Some of the biggest losers in recent years have been COVID-19 pandemic darlings, with MRNA being a prime example. The company’s blockbuster vaccine was developed, approved and commercialized in record time, sending valuations to sky-high levels. Now shares are down about 67% over the past year, with fresh headwinds from the appointment of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a noted vaccine skeptic.
That said, Moderna is not in the direst of straits. Its most recent quarter showed $5.1 billion in cash on hand against just $741 million in debt. Still, with a trailing-12-month operating cash flow burn rate of $2.7 billion, the company needs a win from its current pipeline before its balance sheet deteriorates to the point of requiring a capital raise, which would likely dilute shareholders.
AeroVironment Inc. (AVAV)
The Russia-Ukraine war has highlighted the battlefield potential of drones as both reconnaissance and attack tools. A strong beneficiary has been AVAV, a domestic drone manufacturer offering both ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) drones and loitering munition systems. AVAV is also a top holding in Cathie Wood’s ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF (ARKQ), at 4.4%.
The risk with AVAV is that valuations may have outrun fundamentals. While the company generates steady revenue through U.S. government contracts, shares currently trade at a lofty 107.5 times forward earnings and 8.3 times sales. If milestones such as new contract awards fail to meet expectations, investors could face multiple compression, where the stock’s valuation contracts even if revenues grow.
[Read: 10 Best Growth Stocks to Buy for 2025]
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6 High-Risk Stocks for Aggressive Investors originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 09/02/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
