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 120,000-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 (signified by four- and five-star ratings) could indicate that further research is in order.

Here are three such stocks:

Company

Today’s Intraday Price

Industry

CAPS Rating (out of 5)

Fools Saying Outperform

LKQ Corp (NASDAQ:LKQX)

$9.65

Auto Parts Wholesale

4 Stars

315 of 327

Gulf Island Fabrication, Inc. (NASDAQ:GIFI)

$13.72

Oil & Gas Drilling & Exploration

4 Stars

348 of 362

J. Crew Group, Inc. (NYSE:JCG)

$12.53

Apparel Stores

2 Stars

243 of 291

Source: Motley Fool CAPS, as of Nov. 12, 2008.

Top-rated auto parts wholesale company:

  • Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC): Stock price is 25% lower than last year.

Top-rated oil & gas drilling & exploration companies:

  • Grey Wolf, Inc. (AMEX:GW): Stock price is 13% higher than last year.
  • Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (NYSE:HP): Stock price is 19% lower than last year.

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