1 Stock Under $50 with Competitive Advantages and 2 We Brush Off

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.

Luckily for you, our mission at StockStory is to help you make money and avoid losses by sorting the winners from the losers. Keeping that in mind, here is one stock under $50 with huge potential and two that could be down big.

Two Stocks Under $50 to Sell:

Central Garden & Pet (CENT)

Share Price: $37.74

Enhancing the lives of both pets and homeowners, Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) is a leading producer and distributor of essential products for pet care, lawn and garden maintenance, and pest control.

Why Should You Sell CENT?

1. Organic sales performance over the past two years indicates the company may need to make strategic adjustments or rely on M&A to catalyze faster growth
2. Demand will likely be soft over the next 12 months as Wall Street’s estimates imply tepid growth of 1.1%
3. Low returns on capital reflect management’s struggle to allocate funds effectively

At $37.74 per share, Central Garden & Pet trades at 13.4x forward P/E. To fully understand why you should be careful with CENT, check out our full research report (it’s free).

Pediatrix Medical Group (MD)

Share Price: $21.10

With a network of approximately 2,620 affiliated physicians caring for some of the most vulnerable patients, Pediatrix Medical Group (NYSE:MD) provides specialized physician services focused on neonatal, maternal-fetal, pediatric cardiology and other pediatric subspecialty care across 37 states.

Why Do We Think MD Will Underperform?

1. Lagging comparable store sales over the past two years suggest it might have to change its pricing and marketing strategy to stimulate demand
2. Earnings per share lagged its peers over the last five years as they only grew by 1.2% annually
3. Diminishing returns on capital from an already low starting point show that neither management’s prior nor current bets are going as planned

Pediatrix Medical Group’s stock price of $21.10 implies a valuation ratio of 9.7x forward P/E. If you’re considering MD for your portfolio, see our FREE research report to learn more.

One Stock Under $50 to Watch:

Barrett (BBSI)

Share Price: $35.53

Operating as a professional employer organization (PEO) that serves over 8,000 companies with more than 120,000 worksite employees, Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) provides management solutions that help small and mid-sized businesses handle human resources, payroll, workers' compensation, and other administrative functions.

Why Are We Fans of BBSI?

1. Solid 7.2% annual revenue growth over the last two years indicates its offering’s solve complex business issues
2. Performance over the past five years was boosted by share buybacks, which enabled its earnings per share to grow faster than its revenue
3. ROIC punches in at 54.6%, illustrating management’s expertise in identifying profitable investments

Barrett is trading at $35.53 per share, or 16.1x forward P/E. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

High-Quality Stocks for All Market Conditions

Your portfolio can’t afford to be based on yesterday’s story. The risk in a handful of heavily crowded stocks is rising daily.

The names generating the next wave of massive growth are right here in our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 244% over the last five years (as of June 30, 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,326% between June 2020 and June 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.