In this article, we will discuss the 12 cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to analysts. If you want to explore similar stocks, you can also take a look at 5 Cheapest Penny Stocks According to Analysts.

2023 started off relatively better than 2022, however, the stock market is still not giving an all-clear signal. Analysts and investors are speculating about what the Fed will do at the March 2023 FOMC meeting, with some expecting a 25 basis point hike and others anticipating a 50 basis point hike.

Wharton Professor: “I Think That Fed Policy Is Very Misguided”

Professor emeritus of Wharton, Jeremy Siegel, appeared in an interview on CNBC where he talked about what he thinks the Fed is likely to do at the next FOMC meeting. Professor Siegel started off by bringing to attention the fact that it has now been exactly 3 years since the Covid-19 pandemic and noted that during this 3-year period, wages have grown at a lower rate relative to inflation. Professor Siegel said that when this is the case, wages may not be the cause of inflation and in history, wages have grown at a rate between 1% and 2% higher than inflation. Here are some comments from Jeremy Siegel:

“So workers are way behind, where they normally are, over the last 3 years. But more importantly, if J. Powell himself has said that there is a structural shift downward in the labor supply, well listen, economics 101 says if there’s a reduction in supply we have to increase the real wage to clear the market. It is not the job of the Fed to offset a supply-side shift. They control aggregate demand. So I think they’re focused just on how tight is the labor market, suddenly a maniacal type of a focus is the wrong way to go about it”

While professor Siegel did not speculate about what he thinks the Fed will do, he pointed out that the Fed would make “a wrong decision” if it decides to raise interest rates by 50 basis points at the next FOMC meeting.

Stocks Tank With Strong Jobs Report

The jobs report for February 2023 revealed that the U.S. added 311,000 jobs in February, well-above the expected number of 205,000. The stock market reacted to this with the S&P 500 falling 1.45%, the Nasdaq declining by 1.76%, and the Dow Jones losing 1.07% intraday on March 10.

Why Cheap Penny Stocks?

In the current market environment, investors are repositioning themselves in order to fend off major losses. An interesting area of the market to look at is penny stocks, and specifically cheap penny stocks. investing in penny stocks can be highly rewarding, if it is done right. While penny stocks may provide opportunities for high returns, they are also notorious for coming with a higher degree of risk, and also lacking analyst coverage and liquidity. However, the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of an up-and-coming company or finding an undervalued company with strong fundamentals may be worth the risk.

Analyst and investor sentiment may be insightful indicators to look at when researching penny stocks. If a penny stock holds consensus Buy ratings among Wall Street analysts, has the attention of institutional investors, and is also cheap, it may be worth considering as a potential investment opportunity. Some of the cheapest penny stocks that have received wide analyst coverage and are also on the radars of elite hedge funds include The Lion Electric Company (NYSE:LEV), Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN), and Nokia Oyj (NYSE:NOK). Let’s now take a look at these stocks, among others, in detail.

Our Methodology

We screened for stocks that had a share price of less than $5 and a trailing twelve-month price-to-earnings (TTM PE) ratio of less than 15, as of March 9. We sorted our search results by market cap and looked at the TTM PE ratios and average upside potential of the 50 largest stocks from our search results. We also considered analyst coverage for each stock and preferred stocks that have received coverage from at least 4 analysts and hold a consensus Buy rating among them. We narrowed down our selection to the 12 stocks that had the lowest TTM PE ratios and the highest average upside potential, as of March 9. The TTM PE ratio was sourced from Yahoo Finance and the average upside potential was sourced from CNN Business. We have ranked our picks in descending order of their TTM PE ratio, and have included the hedge fund sentiment and analyst ratings for each of them.

12 Cheapest Penny Stocks According to Analysts

12. B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 13.62

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 55.24%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 15

B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) is a Canadian gold mining company. As of March 9, the stock is trading at a TTM PE multiple of 13x. The stock has received coverage from 14 Wall Street analysts, of which 10 have given the stock Buy ratings. The stock has an average price target of $5.07 which represents an upside of 55.24% from current levels. B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) is one of the cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to analysts.

On February 28, National Bank analyst Don DeMarco updated his price target on B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) to C$6.50 from C$6.75 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares.

At the end of Q4 2022, 15 hedge funds were bullish on B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) and disclosed positions worth $182.9 million in the company. Of those, First Eagle Investment Management is the largest shareholder in the company and has a stake worth $102.1 million.

In addition to B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG), other cheap penny stocks that Wall Street analysts see promising upside potential to include The Lion Electric Company (NYSE:LEV), Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN), and Nokia Oyj (NYSE:NOK).

11. Telefonica S.A. (NYSE:TEF)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 12.48

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 12.66%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 5

Telefonica S.A. (NYSE:TEF) is a Spanish communication services company that provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. As of March 9, the stock has a TTM PE ratio of 12.48 and has gained 13.22% year to date.

Wall Street analysts are positive on Telefonica S.A. (NYSE:TEF). The stock has received coverage from 24 Wall Street analysts, of which 11 have given Buy ratings and 9 have recommended to Hold the stock. The stock has a consensus Buy rating among analysts and its average price target of $4.64 implies an upside of 12.66% from current levels. Telefonica S.A. (NYSE:TEF) is placed eleventh among the cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to analysts.

Telefonica S.A. (NYSE:TEF) was held by 5 hedge funds at the end of Q4 2022. These funds held collective stakes worth $16.3 million in the company. As of December 31, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group is the leading investor in the company and has a position worth $4.4 million.

10. Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 11.36

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 33.10%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 24

Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) is a European supplier of metal beverage cans. The company’s operations span Europe, the United States, and Brazil. This January, Citi analyst Anthony Pettinari raised his price target on Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) to $5.50 from $5 and reiterated a Buy rating on the shares.

As of March 9, Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) is trading at a PE multiple of 11x. The stock has received coverage from 8 Wall Street analysts, of which 4 recommend to Buy the stock. The stock has an average price target of $5.75, which represents an upside of 33.10% from its closing price on March 9. Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) is one of the cheapest penny stocks to buy according to analysts.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, 24 hedge funds were bullish on Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) and disclosed positions worth $174.7 million in the company. Of those, Newtyn Management was the top stockholder in the company and held a position worth $35.1 million.

Here is what Rhizome Partners had to say about Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) in its Q3 2022 investor letter:

“Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP) is most exposed to the economic crisis in Europe, with one-third of its EBITDA generated in Europe. Over the summer, there was serious concern about how Europe could source enough energy this winter. Europe has been stockpiling coal and natural gas and creating contingency plans. This is still a concern that we monitor, but it is hard to imagine Ardagh Meal Packing being cut off from power. In the long run, the aluminum can packaging industry is a rational oligopoly that will adjust supply to market demand. All four players—Ball Corporation, Crown Holdings, Ardagh Metal Packaging, and CanPack—are poised to earn high returns on invested capital. In the short term, the timing of the pass-through of input costs and challenges in the European market have temporarily impacted cash flow. Ardagh Metal Packaging’s debt is fixed and termed out, with the nearest maturity in 2027. The company continues to generate a prodigious amount of cash flow, as all packaging companies do through all economic cycles. In addition, we are now receiving an 8.3% dividend, which we will reinvest into additional shares or other investment opportunities.”

9. Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKC)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 11.33

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 56.06%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 5

Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKS) is a Turkish communications and internet services provider. Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKC) was spotted on 5 investors’ portfolios at the end of Q4 2022. These funds held collective positions worth $10.1 million in the company. This is compared to 6 hedge funds in the previous quarter with stakes worth $9.4 million.

On January 31, JPMorgan analyst Jonathan Kennedy-Good raised his price target on Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKC) to TRY 43 from TRY 26.05 and maintained a Neutral rating on the shares. The stock has received coverage from 10 analysts and has a consensus Buy rating among them. As of March 9, Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKC) has a TTM PE ratio of 11.33 and is placed ninth among the cheapest penny stocks to buy now, according to analysts.

As of December 31, Oldfield Partners is the most prominent stockholder in Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (NYSE:TKC) and has a position worth $8.45 million in the company.

8. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 8.21

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 44.42%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) is a leading Brazilian bank and is currently trading at an attractive PE multiple. As of March 9, the stock has a TTM PE ratio of 8.21 and has gained 4.95% on a year-to-date basis.

This February, Grupo Santander analyst Henrique Navarro upgraded Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) to Outperform from Neutral and reiterated his $5.70 price target on the shares. The stock has a consensus Buy rating among Wall Street analysts and has an average price target of $6.86, which represents an upside of 44.42% from current levels. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) is one of the cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to analysts.

At the close of the fourth quarter of 2022, 18 hedge funds were long Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) and disclosed positions worth $50 million in the company. This is compared to 16 hedge funds in the preceding quarter with stakes worth $49.6 million. The hedge fund sentiment for the stock is positive.

As of December 31, Orbis Investment Management is the largest shareholder in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) and has disclosed a position worth $77.6 million in the company.

7. Origin Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORGN)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 7.83

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 185.04%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 22

Origin Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORGN) is an innovative American materials company and is involved in the development of carbon-negative materials. Origin Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORGN) was a part of 22 investors’ portfolios at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022. These funds held collective positions worth $18.5 million in the company.

As of March 9, Origin Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORGN) is trading at a PE multiple of 7x. The stock has received 5 Buy ratings from Wall Street analysts and has an average price target of $12, which represents an upside of 185.04% from its closing price on March 9. Origin Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORGN) is placed seventh among the cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to Wall Street analysts.

Some of the top penny stocks that are popular among elite money managers and analysts include The Lion Electric Company (NYSE:LEV), Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN), and Nokia Oyj (NYSE:NOK).

6. Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD)

PE Ratio (TTM) as of March 9: 7.64

Average Upside Potential as of March 9: 45.45%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) is another leading Brazilian bank and one of the largest banks in Latin America. As of March 9, the stock is trading at a TTM PE ratio of 7.64.

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) has received coverage from 4 Wall Street analysts, 2 of which recommend to Buy the stock. The stock has an average price target of $4, which represents an upside of 45.45% from current levels. Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) is one of the cheapest penny stocks to buy now according to analysts.

At the end of Q4 2022, 14 hedge funds held stakes in Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) and disclosed positions worth $15.9 million in the company. Of those, Slate Path Capital is the largest shareholder in the company and has disclosed a position worth $13.7 million.

Click to continue reading and see 5 Cheapest Penny Stocks According to Analysts.

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Disclosure: None. 12 Cheapest Penny Stocks According to Analysts is originally published on Insider Monkey.