When a stock hits a fresh low, it can either signal a dirt cheap dream stock or a dreadful stock to avoid. Separating the wheat from the chaff is difficult, but finding well-run companies at bargain-basement prices is a great way to accumulate a fortune over the long-run.

With that in mind, we'll use the aggregate intelligence of the 110,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS to see what the community is saying about stocks hitting 52-week lows today. The community's approval (indicated by four- and five-star ratings) could signal that further research is in order.

Here are three such stocks:

 Company

Today’s Low

Industry

CAPS Rating

Fools Saying Outperform

Research

ValueClick (NASDAQ:VCLK)

$10.20

Media

****

535 of 562

Research

Ultra Clean Holdings (NASDAQ:UCTT)

$6.61

Electronics

*****

316 of 324

Research

Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI)

$26.00

Automotive

****

664 of 693

Research

Source: Motley Fool CAPS, as of July 17, 2008.

Five-star media companies:

  • Marvel Entertainment (NYSE:MVL) -- Up 22.0% in past year.
  • Net Servicos de Comunicacao (NASDAQ:NETC) -- Stock price is 27.6% cheaper than last year.

Four- and five-star automotive companies:

  • Wonder Auto Technology (NASDAQ:WATG) -- Up 35.7% in the last year.
  • Toyota (NYSE:TM) -- Stock price is 26.0% cheaper than last year.

Come and join us on CAPS to learn more about these and countless other interesting stock ideas.