3 Stocks Under $50 Facing Headwinds

The $10-50 price range often includes mid-sized businesses with proven track records and plenty of growth runway ahead. They also usually carry less risk than penny stocks, though they’re not immune to volatility as many lack the scale advantages of their larger peers.

This is precisely where StockStory comes in - we do the heavy lifting to identify companies with solid fundamentals so you can invest with confidence. Keeping that in mind, here are three stocks under $50 to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.

Conagra (CAG)

Share Price: $24.51

Founded in 1919 as Nebraska Consolidated Mills in Omaha, Nebraska, Conagra Brands today (NYSE:CAG) boasts a diverse portfolio of packaged foods brands that includes everything from whipped cream to jarred pickles to frozen meals.

Why Do We Pass on CAG?

1. Falling unit sales over the past two years show it’s struggled to move its products and had to rely on price increases
2. Projected sales are flat for the next 12 months, implying demand will slow from its three-year trend
3. Costs have risen faster than its revenue over the last year, causing its operating margin to decline by 7.9 percentage points

Conagra’s stock price of $24.51 implies a valuation ratio of 10.1x forward price-to-earnings. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including CAG in your portfolio.

Kyndryl (KD)

Share Price: $32.64

Born from IBM's managed infrastructure services business in a 2021 spinoff, Kyndryl (NYSE:KD) is the world's largest IT infrastructure services provider that designs, builds, and manages technology environments for enterprise customers.

Why Does KD Give Us Pause?

1. Annual sales declines of 5.9% for the past four years show its products and services struggled to connect with the market during this cycle
2. Poor free cash flow margin of -0.3% for the last five years limits its freedom to invest in growth initiatives, execute share buybacks, or pay dividends
3. Push for growth has led to negative returns on capital, signaling value destruction

Kyndryl is trading at $32.64 per share, or 17x forward price-to-earnings. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than KD.

CoreCivic (CXW)

Share Price: $22.71

Originally founded in 1983 as the first private prison company in the United States, CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) operates correctional facilities, detention centers, and residential reentry programs for government agencies across the United States.

Why Is CXW Risky?

1. Sluggish trends in its average available beds suggest customers aren’t adopting its solutions as quickly as the company hoped
2. Incremental sales over the last two years were much less profitable as its earnings per share fell by 22.8% annually while its revenue grew
3. 8 percentage point decline in its free cash flow margin over the last five years reflects the company’s increased investments to defend its market position

At $22.71 per share, CoreCivic trades at 22.6x forward price-to-earnings. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why CXW doesn’t pass our bar.

Stocks We Like More

Market indices reached historic highs following Donald Trump’s presidential victory in November 2024, but the outlook for 2025 is clouded by new trade policies that could impact business confidence and growth.

While this has caused many investors to adopt a "fearful" wait-and-see approach, we’re leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Take advantage of Mr. Market by checking out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 175% over the last five years.

Stocks that made our list in 2019 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+2,183% between December 2019 and December 2024) as well as under-the-radar businesses like Sterling Infrastructure (+1,096% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.