There are big risks in low-priced stocks, but the same can be said about the big opportunities. There's a reason why most companies are trading in the single digits, but sometimes the markdowns aren't warranted.
New Age Beverages Corp. (NBEV +0.00%), Sirius XM Holdings (SIRI +0.00%), Sogou (SOGO +0.00%), Vipshop Holdings (VIPS 0.19%), LendingClub (LC +1.80%), and Rite Aid (RAD +0.00%) are some of the stocks with low prices but bigger expectations. Let's take a closer look at these six stocks trading for $6 or less.
Image source: New Age Beverages.
1. New Age Beverages Corp. -- $4.20
It's fitting that New Age Beverages closed out last week with a price tag of $4.20. It's been a volatile marijuana stock since the company announced at the annual convenience store convention that took place earlier this month that it would introduce a line of cannabidiol (CBD)-infused beverages. New Age Beverages generated plenty of buzz for the products that it hopes to get on store shelves once legal and regulatory hurdles are cleared.
New Age Beverages isn't the only company hoping that CBD-spiked ready-to-drink teas, shots, and sparkling waters will lead to explosive sales given the perceived medical benefits of the cannabis component. However, New Age Beverages already has several natural and functional canned and bottled beverages already on the market. Sales this year are dipping slightly from the $52.2 million it rang up last year, but all of the marijuana stock headlines have likely done plenty in expanding brand awareness for New Age Beverages' existing products.
2. Sirius XM Holdings -- $5.67
Another stock that has done right by its investors is Sirius XM Holdings. The satellite radio monopoly's stock is rising for the 10th year in a row, though recent weakness has pushed its year-to-date gain down to a modest 6% rise.
Sirius XM is a legit media juggernaut. There are now 33.7 million subscribers to Sirius or XM satellite radio. Growth may be slowing, but Sirius XM continues to expand on its profitability. Net income has remained consistently positive since 2010, and sequential subscriber growth continues to be the norm. Revenue may have slowed to a 6% gain in last week's third-quarter report, but earnings soared 24% for the period.
The big push at Sirius XM these days is digital delivery, something that the market is underestimating. Wall Street has taken a breather on the stock in recent months, but sooner or later, the market rewards the kind of consistent growth that Sirius XM is delivering.
3. Sogou -- $5.74
When Sohu.com (SOHU +0.31%) spun off its fast-growing search engine late last year, it opened the door for investors to buy into the best thing about Sohu. Unlike its sluggish legacy online advertising business and its lumpy internet gaming interests, paid search has been the real growth driver at Sohu.
Sogou went public at $13, and even though it's done nothing but continue to pace the growth for Sohu, it has seen its stock lose more than half of its value a year later. Revenue rose 43% in Sogou's second quarter with adjusted earnings soaring 58%. Guidance was the dagger, falling well short of Wall Street expectations. A few analysts downgraded the stock in the process. The one-time impact of dealing with a regulatory investigation will result in top-line growth decelerating to between 7% and 11% for the quarter that ended last month. A new smart-hardware strategy is also eating into hardware sales.
Sogou is now trading for less than 14 times next year's earnings forecast, a bargain if you believe that the third quarter's slowdown is truly a one-time retreat.
4. Vipshop Holdings -- $4.71
Another Chinese dot-com that has fallen on hard times is Vipshop Holdings. The provider of flash sales on brand-name apparel was once the market's hottest stock. It more than doubled for three consecutive years between 2012 and 2014.
The platform remains popular. Revenue growth is slowing, but it still came through with 18% growth last time out. Adjusted earnings plummeted 23% as the cutthroat climate finds Vipshop and its peers promoting aggressively and offering subsidized fulfillment to smoke out sales. Vipshop is now trading at a single-digit earnings multiple, and big gains await investors if Vipshop can turn its bottom line around in the coming quarters.
5. LendingClub -- $3.13
Peer-to-peer lending doesn't get a lot of love on Wall Street, but it's a win-win for folks looking to borrow money and risk-tolerant income investors willing to lend out their money in the chase for higher yields. LendingClub has had a rough first few years as a public company, and it wasn't until just a few weeks ago that it settled up on Federal Trade Commission and SEC complaints stemming from company disclosures that ultimately cost its CEO his job.
The platform's popularity continues to grow. Revenue rose 27% in LendingClub's latest quarter, and loan originations rose 31% to hit a record $2.8 billion. Guidance wasn't great. Profitability remains a challenge. The depressed stock has some serious upside as demand for peer-to-peer lending gains -- pun intended -- interest.
6. Rite Aid -- $1.05
After being jilted at the altar --twice -- it's easy to wonder if Rite Aid will ever find love again. The drugstore operator saw regulators kill the first deal. Institutional investors lacking self-awareness of the Rite Aid plight doomed the second chance at nuptials.
Rite Aid has shed nearly half of its value since it bowed out of a deal to combine with Albertsons this summer, but now let's accentuate the positives. Rite Aid is still a juggernaut, and its balance sheet has improved since completing a partial asset sale. The challenges are real for the industry in general and Rite Aid in particular, but this isn't half the company that it was this summer.
