3 Stocks Under $50 That Concern Us

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.

These dynamics can cause headaches for even the most seasoned professionals, which is why we started StockStory - to help you separate the good companies from the bad. Keeping that in mind, here are three stocks under $50 to swipe left on and some alternatives you should look into instead.

Teradata (TDC)

Share Price: $21.26

Pioneering data warehousing technology in the 1980s before "big data" was a common term, Teradata (NYSE:TDC) provides cloud-based data analytics and AI platforms that help large enterprises integrate, analyze, and leverage their data across multiple environments.

Why Do We Avoid TDC?

1. Billings have dropped by 6.2% over the last year, suggesting it might have to lower prices to stimulate growth
2. Projected sales decline of 2.5% over the next 12 months indicates demand will continue deteriorating
3. Gross margin of 59.3% is way below its competitors, leaving less money to invest in areas like marketing and R&D

At $21.26 per share, Teradata trades at 1.2x forward price-to-sales. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than TDC.

Dine Brands (DIN)

Share Price: $28.66

Operating a franchise model, Dine Brands (NYSE:DIN) is a casual restaurant chain that owns the Applebee’s and IHOP banners.

Why Are We Out on DIN?

1. Poor same-store sales performance over the past two years indicates it’s having trouble bringing new diners into its restaurants
2. Day-to-day expenses have swelled relative to revenue over the last year as its operating margin fell by 4.6 percentage points
3. High net-debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 6× could force the company to raise capital at unfavorable terms if market conditions deteriorate

Dine Brands is trading at $28.66 per share, or 6.6x forward P/E. If you’re considering DIN for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

Acadia Healthcare (ACHC)

Share Price: $25.04

With a network of over 250 facilities serving patients in 38 states and Puerto Rico, Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC) operates facilities providing mental health and substance use disorder treatment services across the United States.

Why Does ACHC Worry Us?

1. Disappointing admissions over the past two years imply it may need to invest in improvements to get back on track
2. Free cash flow margin dropped by 24.8 percentage points over the last five years, implying the company became more capital intensive as competition picked up
3. Diminishing returns on capital from an already low starting point show that neither management’s prior nor current bets are going as planned

Acadia Healthcare’s stock price of $25.04 implies a valuation ratio of 9.7x forward P/E. Read our free research report to see why you should think twice about including ACHC in your portfolio.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

Trump’s April 2025 tariff bombshell triggered a massive market selloff, but stocks have since staged an impressive recovery, leaving those who panic sold on the sidelines.

Take advantage of the rebound by checking out our Top 6 Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Tecnoglass (+1,754% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today

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