While most of Wall Street focuses on large-cap and mega-cap stocks, as they provide a degree of safety and liquidity, many investors are limited in the number of shares they can buy. Many of the biggest public companies, especially the technology giants, trade in the hundreds, all the way up to over $1,000 per share or more. At those steep prices, it is difficult to get any decent share count leverage.

Many investors, especially more aggressive traders, look at lower-priced stocks as a way not only to make some good money but to get a higher share count. That can really help the decision-making process, especially when you are on to a winner, as you can always sell half and keep half.
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We screened our 24/7 Wall St. research database looking for well-known companies that could very well offer patient investors some huge returns for the rest of 2022 and beyond. Skeptics of low-priced shares should remember that at one point both Amazon and Apple traded in the single digits. One stock we featured over the years, Zynga, recently was purchased by Take-Two Interactive. Cogent Biosciences, which we featured in March, has tripled.

While all five of these stocks are rated Buy, it is important to remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.

Arcos Dorados

This company may seem under the radar, but it has one of the best products imaginable in terms of name recognition. Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ARCO) is the world’s largest independent McDonald’s franchisee.

The company is based in Montevideo, Uruguay and has the exclusive right to own, operate and grant franchises of McDonald’s restaurants in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Aruba, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, the U.S. Virgin Islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, and Venezuela. As of December 31, 2021, it operated or franchised 2,261 restaurants.

Goldman Sachs recently raised its $9 price target on Arcos Dorados stock to $10, in line with the $9.95 consensus target. The shares last traded on Friday at $7.31 apiece.

Coty

Smart investors know that regardless of the economy, Americans will continue to buy makeup and fragrances and this is a very solid play on that theme. Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY) is number two globally in the fragrance category and number six in color cosmetics.
The company manufactures, markets, distributes and sells beauty products worldwide. The company provides prestige fragrances, skincare and color cosmetics products through prestige retailers, including perfumeries, department stores, e-retailers, direct-to-consumer websites, and duty-free shops under the Alexander McQueen, Burberry, Bottega Veneta, Calvin Klein, Cavalli, Chloe, Davidoff, Escada, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Jil Sander, Joop!, Kylie Jenner, Lacoste, Lancaster, Marc Jacobs, Miu Miu, Nikos, philosophy, and Tiffany & Co. brands.
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Coty also offers mass color cosmetics, fragrance, skincare, and body care products primarily through hypermarkets, supermarkets, drug stores, pharmacies, mid-tier department stores, traditional food and drug retailers, and e-commerce retailers under the Adidas, Beckham, Biocolor, Bozzano, Bourjois, Bruno Banani, CoverGirl, Enrique, Max Factor, Mexx, Monange, Nautica, Paixao, Rimmel, Risque, Sally Hansen, Stetson, and 007 James Bond brands.

D.A. Davidson has a $10.50 price target, while the consensus target on Coty stock is $10.71. The shares closed on Friday at $7.53.

Helix Energy Solutions

This oil industry services stock holds solid value at current trading levels. Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc. (NYSE: HLX) is an offshore energy services company that provides specialty services to the industry, primarily in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea and the Asia Pacific and West Africa regions.

The company engineers, manages and conducts well intervention operations that include production enhancement and abandonment and construction in water depths ranging from 200 to 10,000 feet. It offers remotely operated vehicles, trenchers and drills for offshore construction and well intervention services. It also provides intervention engineering; inspection, repair and maintenance of production structures, trees, jumpers, risers, pipelines, subsea equipment and related support services. In addition, the company offers reclamation and remediation services, well plug and abandonment services, pipeline abandonment services and site inspections.

Helix Energy also engages in the installation of flowlines, control umbilicals and manifold assemblies and risers; trenching and burial of pipelines; installation and tie-in of riser and manifold assembly; commissioning, testing and inspection activities; and provision of cable and umbilical lay and connection services. Additionally, the company offers oil and natural gas processing facilities and services to oil and gas companies, as well as a fast response system. It serves independent oil and gas producers and suppliers, pipeline transmission companies, renewable energy companies and offshore engineering and construction firms.

The $8 Evercore ISI price target is well above the $6.15 consensus target. On Friday, Helix Energy Solutions stock last traded at $4.44, up almost 7% on the day.

Skillsoft

This company has attracted a ton of attention across Wall Street. Skillsoft Corp. (NYSE: SKIL) provides corporate digital learning services in the United States and internationally. Its enterprise learning solutions prepare organizations for the future of work, as well as enable them to overcome critical skill gaps, drive demonstrable behavior change and unlock the potential in their greatest assets.
In addition, Skillsoft provides various platform capabilities, such as open platform, custom channels and journeys, administrator-promoted content, and flexible assignments, tracking and in-depth reporting, training groups, and records management. Further, the company offers learning management systems and talent management software.
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The company has seen a strong increase in insider buying over the last year, and with its current low price, more could be on the way.

Skillsoft stock has a target price of $7 at Barclays. The consensus price target is higher at $8.50, but the stock closed at just $2.92 on Friday.

SomaLogic

This stock was hit hard at the end of last year and looks to be clawing its way back. SomaLogic Inc. (NASDAQ: SLGC) operates as a protein biomarker discovery and clinical diagnostics company in the United States. It develops slow-off-rate modified aptamers (SOMAmers), which are modified nucleic acid-based protein-binding reagents that are specific for their cognate protein. It also offers proprietary SomaScan services, which provide multiplex protein detection and quantification of protein levels in complex biological samples.

The company’s SOMAmers/SomaScan technology enables researchers to analyze various types of biological samples for protein biomarker signatures, which can be utilized in drug discovery and development. SomaScan’s biomarker discoveries help in diagnostic applications in various areas of diseases, including cardiovascular and metabolic disease, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, wellness and others.

The company’s solutions also include SomaSignal tests, which are research use only tests for clinical trial applications. It serves research and clinical customers, with a focus on pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as academic research institutions. It also facilitates drug development, analysis of clinical trials and new human biology insights by assessing protein-protein and protein-gene networks.

Cowen has set a $9 target price. The consensus target is $7.75. The stock last traded at $3.51 on Friday.

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These are five stocks for aggressive investors looking to get share count leverage on companies that have sizable upside potential. While not suited for all investors, they are not penny stocks with absolutely no history or liquidity, and major Wall Street firms have research coverage.

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