Earlier on February 19, Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss his optimistic outlook for North American markets and attributed his bullishness to a spectacular earnings season characterized by record-high profit margins and the strongest revenue growth since 2022. He emphasized that a healthy bull market comes from rotation and noted that the market is currently not far from reaching all-time highs.
Talking about the technology sector and the massive AI spending by hyperscalers, Detrick suggested that expectations for AI and large-cap tech simply became too high. However, he viewed the then-current pullback (noting software is down over 20% from late October peaks) as a buying opportunity similar to the DeepSeek sell-off in previous months. While semiconductors remain strong and telecom is up double digits, Detrick expects tech to ‘take the baton back’ in the coming months because these companies still possess high profitability. Regarding specific sector preferences for 2026, Detrick revealed that Carson Group has been neutral on tech. He favors cyclical areas, specifically industrials, energy, and materials. He highlighted that the ‘S&P 493’ was up 3% this year, while the MAG7 was down 7%, representing a 10% outperformance by the broader market.
That being said, we’re here with a list of the 12 cheap new stocks to buy now.
Our Methodology
We used screeners to identify stocks that are trading below a forward P/E of 15 and have gone public in the last 5 years. We limited our final selection to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. These stocks are also popular among analysts and elite hedge funds.
Note: All data was sourced on March 4.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 427.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 264 percentage points (see more details here).
12 Cheap New Stocks to Buy Now
12. NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ)
NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ) is one of the cheap new stocks to buy now. On February 27, NIQ Global Intelligence reported strong financial results for the full-year 2025. In Q4 alone, total revenue reached $1,139.1 million, which was a 9.2% year-over-year increase, while organic constant currency growth stood at 5.7%. For the full year, total revenue grew 5.7% to $4,198.4 million. The company’s Intelligence segment was a primary driver, with organic constant currency revenue increasing 7.7% in the final quarter and 7.1% for 2025.
Profitability and liquidity improved following a transformative year that included the company’s IPO in July 2025. Net losses were narrowed substantially, with Adjusted EBITDA for the full year rising 23.8% to $916.5 million, representing a margin of 21.8%. This financial strengthening was supported by a revamped capital structure and debt refinancing that reduced annualized interest expenses by ~$100 million. By the end of 2025, NIQ Global Intelligence maintained a robust liquidity position of $1,268.8 million.
The company expanded its technological moat by capturing 4 trillion data records per week through its AI-powered Connect engine and launching new agentic AI features to enhance client decision-making. For 2026, NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ) projected organic constant currency revenue growth between 5.0% and 5.3% and an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 23.5% to 23.8%. To support these targets, the company approved a 2026 restructuring program aimed at generating $55 to $65 million in annualized cost savings through AI-enabled efficiencies and workforce optimization.
NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ) is a global consumer intelligence company that provides brands, retailers, and other clients with insights into consumer shopping behavior to inform strategic and operational decisions.
11. Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE:GPOR)
Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE:GPOR) is one of the cheap new stocks to buy now. On February 24, Gulfport Energy Corporation reported strong operational execution for the full-year 2025, delivering total net production of 1.04 Bcfe per day and a 29% year-over-year increase in liquids production to 18.7 MBbl per day. The company reported net income of $427.8 million and adjusted EBITDA of $878.5 million, supported by a successful U-development in the Utica and expanded inventory in the Marcellus.
For 2026, Gulfport expects total net daily production to range between 1.030 and 1.055 Bcfe per day, with liquids production forecasted to grow ~5% over 2025 levels. The company plans a total capital expenditure budget of $400 to $430 million, prioritizing high-return dry and wet gas development in the Utica and Marcellus basins. A key focus involves evaluating the Marcellus North area in Jefferson and Belmont Counties to support future inventory planning. This disciplined capital allocation will drive meaningful growth in adjusted free cash flow, assuming current commodity strip pricing.
The company’s 2026 financial strategy emphasizes aggressive shareholder returns and strategic acreage acquisition. Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE:GPOR) plans to complete its $100 million discretionary land investment program by the end of Q1 2026, adding more than two years of drilling inventory. Simultaneously, the company intends to use its adjusted free cash flow and revolver capacity to repurchase more than $140 million of common stock in Q1 alone.
Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE:GPOR) acquires, explores, and produces natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids in the US.
