About this episode

The episode discusses the changing dynamics of risk and return in investing, particularly in relation to low-volatility stocks outperforming high-volatility stocks.

After more than a decade where US technology stocks dominated global markets, late 2025 and early 2026 saw signs of a rotation. Less glamorous sectors like industrials and consumer staples, companies often considered ‘boring’ began to outperform the high-flying tech names that had captured investors’ attention for years. We revisit the work of Bob Haugen, a pioneering quantitative investor and academic who spent much of his career challenging a core assumption in finance: that higher risk should lead to higher returns. Haugen argued the opposite - that lower-volatility stocks often outperform higher-volatility stocks over time. You can find the full article here. Would you like more free insights from Mark, Shani and the rest of the Morningstar team? You can find them here. A message from Mark and Shani For the past five years, we’ve released a weekly podcast to arm you with the tools to invest successfully. We’ve always strived to provide independent, thoughtful analysis, backed by the work of hundreds of researchers and professionals at Morningstar. We’ve shared our journeys with you, and you’ve shared back. We’ve listened to what you’re after and created a companion for…

People in this episode

Hosts: Mark, Shani

Topics covered

• risk and return
• investing strategies
• market rotation
• low-volatility stocks
• quantitative investing

Keywords

• risk
• return
• investing
• technology stocks
• low-volatility
• Bob Haugen
• market performance

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Morningstar, Amazon

Products: Invest Your Way

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