Inflation has been the scourge of American households since the Covid-19 disruption. But investors can attempt to beat rising prices with stocks under $20. While these enterprises may be cheap, they potentially offer plenty of pop.
Of course, one of the primary catalysts for low-priced securities is the accessibility factor. After all, not every brokerage offers fractional share ownership. Also, from a psychological standpoint, investors generally prefer owning whole-unit equities. If anything, the math is easier.
Second, stocks under $20 sit in a sweet spot where they’re viable enterprises but they could potentially rise higher. They’re still relatively unknown so the spotlight could help dramatically invigorate sentiment.
You should realize that this is a higher-risk, higher-reward category. If you can handle this reality, these cheap stocks under $20 might be what you’re looking for.
Genius Sports (GENI)
With the rising popularity of sports betting and other forms of engagement, Genius Sports (NYSE:GENI) should be on your radar for stocks under $20. Per its public profile, Genius engages in the development and sale of technology-led products and services to the sports, sports betting and sports media industries. Further, it offers technology infrastructure for the collection, integration and distribution of live data of sports leagues, among other services.
To be fair, the business has a spotty record when it comes to the earnings print. Last year, the best performance related to the bottom line was in the second quarter. Back then, the company posted a loss of 5 cents per share, matching analysts’ consensus expectations. Otherwise, the company incurred some bad misses.
That said, experts see a turnaround in the current fiscal year, anticipating a per-share loss of 18 cents atop revenue of $480.59 million. These are significantly better figures than last year’s print of a loss of 32 cents and sales of just under $413 million.
The best part? Analysts rate GENI a unanimous strong buy with an $8.79 average price target. That’s an implied 53% upside potential, making it one of the stocks under $20 to consider.
SkyWater Technology (SKYT)
With so much emphasis placed on computer chips these days, investors may want to focus on SkyWater Technology (NASDAQ:SKYT). Per its corporate profile, Skywater along with its subsidiaries operates as a pure-play technology foundry that engages in the provision of semiconductor development, manufacturing and packaging services in the U.S. Since the start of the year, SKYT gained almost 15% of equity value.
Thanks to the underlying relevance, there could be more gains on tap. For full disclosure, SkyWater missed its bottom-line target in Q2 2023, producing a loss of 14 cents per share. Analysts were anticipating a loss of 11 cents. However, the company pared down expected losses in the other quarters of fiscal year 2023.
For 2024, experts believe that SkyWater can post earnings per share of 3 cents atop revenue of $322.33 million. Further, the high-side estimate calls for EPS of 13 cents and sales of $333.8 million. For context, SkyWater posted a loss of 17 cents per share and sales of $286.68 million in 2023.
In closing, analysts peg SKYT as a unanimous strong buy with a $15 price target. It’s another intriguing idea for stocks under $20.
Viridian Therapeutics (VRDN)
A biotechnology firm, Viridian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VRDN) discovers and develops treatments for serious and rare diseases. The company’s product pipeline features VRDN-001, a monoclonal antibody currently in Phase 3 trials that has been developed for the treatment of thyroid eye disease. Admittedly, VRDN is a volatile investment, losing more than 22% of its value since the start of January. Still, for speculators, there could be something here.
For one thing, the company has posted some decent earnings performances, relatively speaking. For example, in Q3 of last year, Viridian’s loss per share landed at $1.09. This was better than the expected loss of $1.27. It also narrowly beat in Q2, posting a loss of $1.27 versus an expected loss of $1.29. That said, the average earnings surprise for Q1 and Q4 sat at 46.4% below parity.
This year, the narrative may be tricky, with the average consensus calling for sales of $270,000. That doesn’t sound like a lot, considering that last year’s revenue tally was $314,000. However, experts believe that by 2025, the top line could soar to $8.3 million.
Analysts are clearly intrigued, rating VRDN a unanimous strong buy with a $38.64 price target. That implies almost 123% upside potential, making Viridian one of the top stocks under $20.
On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
