Stocks in the $10-50 range offer a sweet spot between affordability and stability as they’re typically more established than penny stocks. But their headline prices don’t guarantee quality, and investors should exercise caution as some have shaky business models.

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 are two stocks under $50 with huge potential and one that could be down big.

One Stock Under $50 to Sell:

Home Bancshares (HOMB)

Share Price: $29.75

Founded in Conway, Arkansas in 1998 and growing through strategic acquisitions across the Southeast, Home Bancshares (NYSE: HOMB) operates as the bank holding company for Centennial Bank, providing commercial and retail banking services to businesses and individuals across multiple states.

Why Does HOMB Fall Short?

1. Flat sales over the last two years suggest it must find different ways to grow during this cycle
2. Estimated net interest income growth of 1.4% for the next 12 months implies demand will slow from its four-year trend
3. Overall productivity is expected to decrease over the next year as Wall Street thinks its efficiency ratio will degrade by 1.6 percentage points

At $29.75 per share, Home Bancshares trades at 1.4x forward P/B. Check out our free in-depth research report to learn more about why HOMB doesn’t pass our bar.

Two Stocks Under $50 to Watch:

Confluent (CFLT)

Share Price: $24.50

Started in 2014 by the team of engineers at LinkedIn who originally built it as an internal tool, Confluent (NASDAQ: CFLT) provides infrastructure software for organizations that makes it easy and fast to collect and move large amounts of data between different systems.

Why Do We Like CFLT?

1. Billings have averaged 27.9% growth over the last year, showing it’s securing new contracts that could potentially increase in value over time
2. Projected revenue growth of 17.3% for the next 12 months suggests its momentum from the last three years will persist
3. Healthy unit economics are reflected in its 73.9% gross margin and give it more money to invest in marketing and R&D

Confluent’s stock price of $24.50 implies a valuation ratio of 6.9x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it’s free.

Live Oak Bancshares (LOB)

Share Price: $32.55

Founded during the 2008 financial crisis with a vision to reimagine small business banking through technology, Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE: LOB) is a bank holding company that specializes in providing online banking services and SBA-guaranteed loans to small businesses across targeted industries nationwide.

Why Are We Bullish on LOB?

1. Annual net interest income growth of 14.5% over the last four years was superb and indicates its market share increased during this cycle
2. Incremental sales significantly boosted profitability as its annual earnings per share growth of 59.2% over the last five years outstripped its revenue performance
3. Impressive 11.3% annual tangible book value per share growth over the last five years indicates it’s building equity value this cycle

Live Oak Bancshares is trading at $32.55 per share, or 1.3x forward P/B. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it’s free.

Stocks We Like Even More

The market surged in 2024 and reached record highs after Donald Trump’s presidential victory in November, but questions about new economic policies are adding much uncertainty for 2025.

While the crowd speculates what might happen next, we’re homing in on the companies that can succeed regardless of the political or macroeconomic environment. Put yourself in the driver’s seat and build a durable portfolio by checking out our Top 5 Strong Momentum 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-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% 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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