For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – July 14, 2026 – Stocks in this week’s article Ternium TX, Albemarle Corp. ALB, Everus Construction Group ECG, TAT Technologies TATT and Sunstone Hotel Investors SHO.
Bet on These 5 Low-Leverage Stocks as SK Hynix Makes Record Nasdaq Debut
Major U.S. stock indices ended July 10, 2026, on an optimistic note, supported by broad-based buying in banking shares. Meanwhile, South Korean chip giant SK Hynix stole the spotlight, soaring nearly 13% in its historic $26.5 billion Wall Street ADR debut and injecting a fresh wave of optimism into the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
While this milestone might encourage investors to chase high-growth tech stocks, escalating weekend altercations between the U.S. and Iranian forces in the Middle East threaten to trigger a sudden market pullback.
Against this highly uncertain macro backdrop, pivoting to financially resilient companies —particularly low-leverage stocks with robust balance sheets — presents a prudent defensive strategy for the days ahead.
These fiscally conservative companies are better positioned to navigate interest rate fluctuations and geopolitical uncertainty. By providing a stable foundation in a shifting market, they can serve as a strategic hedge against a potential energy-driven economic slowdown.
We recommend low-leverage stocks, such asTernium, Albemarle Corp., Everus Construction Group, TAT Technologies and Sunstone Hotel Investors. Before selecting low-leverage stocks, it is important to understand what leverage is and how investing in low-leverage companies can benefit investors.
What’s the Significance of Low-Leverage Stocks?
In finance, leverage refers to the use of borrowed capital to support business operations and drive expansion. Companies typically raise such funds through debt financing, although equity financing remains an alternative. However, firms often prefer debt due to its relatively lower cost and easier availability compared to issuing equity.
Debt financing comes with inherent risks and is beneficial only when it generates returns that exceed the cost of borrowing. To limit downside risk, investors should be cautious of companies that rely excessively on debt. Prudent investing involves selecting businesses with manageable leverage, as completely debt-free companies are rare.
The equity market can be volatile at times. As an investor, if you want to avoid significant losses, we suggest focusing on stocks with low leverage, which are generally deemed less risky.
To identify such stocks, several leverage ratios have historically been developed to measure the amount of debt a company carries. The debt-to-equity ratio is among the most widely used financial ratios.
Analyzing Debt/Equity
Debt-to-Equity Ratio = Total Liabilities/Shareholders’ Equity
This metric is a liquidity ratio that indicates the amount of financial risk a company bears. A lower debt-to-equity ratio suggests improved solvency for a company.
With the second-quarter 2026 earnings season in its first lap, investors should focus on stocks that have demonstrated solid earnings growth in recent periods.
If a stock carries a high debt-to-equity ratio during an economic downturn, its seemingly strong earnings could quickly turn into a nightmare.
The Winning Strategy
Considering the aforementioned factors, it would be prudent to choose stocks with a low debt-to-equity ratio to ensure steady returns.
Yet, an investment strategy based solely on the debt-to-equity ratio might not fetch the desired outcome. To select stocks with the potential to provide steady returns, we have expanded our screening criteria to include additional factors.
Excluding stocks that have a negative or a zero debt-to-equity ratio, we present our five picks out of the 15 that made it through the screen.
Ternium: It is the leading producer of steel products in Latin America and consolidates the operations of the steel companies like Hylsa in Mexico, Siderar in Argentina and Sidor in Venezuela.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TX’s 2026 sales indicates an improvement of 9.9% from the prior-year reported level. The stock boasts a long-term (three-to-five year) earnings growth rate of 52.80%. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.
Albemarle: It is a leading producer of highly-engineered specialty chemicals geared to meet customer requirements across a bevy of end markets including petroleum refining, consumer electronics, energy storage, construction and automotive.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB’s 2026 revenues indicates an improvement of 19.2% from the prior-year reported actuals. The stock boasts a four-quarter average earnings surprise of 74.50%. ALB currently holds a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Everus Construction Group: It provides a full spectrum of construction services through its electrical and mechanical and transmission and distribution specialty contracting services, principally in the United States.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ECG’s 2026 revenues indicates an improvement of 17% from the prior-year reported number. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ECG’s 2026 earnings indicates an improvement of 11.1% from the prior-year reported number. It currently holds a Zacks Rank #2.
TAT Technologies: It engineers advanced thermal management solutions and provides maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for aircraft components. TAT Technologies’ offerings include cooling systems, Auxiliary Power Units (APUs), and landing gear services for commercial and military fleets.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TATT’s 2026 revenues suggests an improvement of 11.3% from the year-ago reported level. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TATT’s 2026 earnings indicates an improvement of 11% from the prior-year reported number. It currently holds a Zacks Rank #2.
Sunstone Hotel Investors: It is a lodging real estate company that owns hotels primarily in the upper-upscale and upscale segments, primarily operated under franchises owned by nationally recognized companies, such as Marriott, Hilton, InterContinental and Hyatt.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SHO’s 2026 revenues indicates an improvement of 4.5% from the prior-year reported actuals. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 4.90%. It currently holds a Zacks Rank #2.
Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?
Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.7% average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +48.4%, +50.2% and +56.7% per year.
Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.
For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks.com at: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2952655/bet-on-these-5-low-leverage-stocks-as-sk-hynix-makes-record-nasdaq-debut
Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.
About Screen of the Week
Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine. But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use.
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar. They're virtually unknown to the general public. Yet today's 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buys" were generated by the stock-picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016. Its average gain has been a stellar +25% per year. See these high-potential stocks free >>.
Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/zacksresearch
Join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZacksInvestmentResearch
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
Contact: Jim Giaquinto
Company: Zacks.com
Phone: 312-265-9268
Email: pr@zacks.com
Visit: https://www.zacks.com/
Zacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. (SHO): Free Stock Analysis Report
Albemarle Corporation (ALB): Free Stock Analysis Report
Ternium S.A. (TX): Free Stock Analysis Report
TAT Technologies Ltd. (TATT): Free Stock Analysis Report
Everus Construction Group, Inc. (ECG): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).