3 Stocks Hitting Low Notes

When a stock hits a fresh low, that can be a signal that it's a dirt cheap dream stock -- or that it’s 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 be a sign that further research is in order.

Here are three such stocks:

	Today’s Low	Industry	CAPS Rating (out of 5)	Fools Saying Outperform	Research
NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX)	$44.6	Financial services	*****	2,146 of 2,217	Research
Valero Energy Corp (NYSE: VLO)	$35.05	Energy	****	3,625 of 3,787	Research
Lloyds TSB Group plc (ADR) (NYSE: LYG)	$22.60	Banking	****	523 of 548	Research

Source: Motley Fool CAPS, as of July 8, 2008.

Other Five-Star Financial Services Companies
Permian Basin Royalty Trust (NYSE: PBT): Up 91.1% in past year.
Provident Energy Trust (NYSE: PVX): Stock price is 13.4% cheaper than last year.

Other Five-Star Energy Companies
ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP): Up 13.8% in the last year.
BP plc (NYSE: BP): Stock price is 9.6% cheaper than last year.

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