Alcoa was listed in Table 13-2 as a company that has a relativity high beta (a measure of stock price volatility). Alcoa produces aluminum and aluminum products. Go to its website at www.alcoa.com, and follow these steps: Under Investors select Financials. Select Annual Reports & Proxy Statements. Download the latest annual report. Scroll all the way down to Selected Financial Data. One of the characteristics of high beta stocks is that they often have volatile earnings performances. Lets check out Alcoa. Compute the year-to-year percentage change in Diluted-Income from Continuing Operations for each of the five years. Do the earnings appear to be volatile? Companies with high betas and inconsistent performance are encouraged to keep their debt ra