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 125,000-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 two such stocks:

Company

Today’s Intraday Price

Industry

CAPS Rating (out of 5)

Fools Saying Outperform

Satyam Computer (ADR) (NYSE:SAY)

$1.58

IT Services

2 Stars

959 of 1036

Hansen Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNSN)

$5.24

Health-Care Equipment and Supplies

4 Stars

437 of 458

Source: Motley Fool CAPS, as of Jan. 12, 2009.

Top-rated IT services companies:

  • ManTech International Corp (NASDAQ:MANT): Stock price is 40% higher than last year.
  • SM&A (NASDAQ:WINS): Stock price is 12% higher than last year.

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