Aggressive Stock-Picking, Week 1: How to Trade 52-Week Lows

Homework Hints

Search Stockpickr for other portfolios that include "52-week low." You may find both professional and nonprofessional portfolios. Read the "Reason for picking" box. Do your reasons match theirs?

Also, see if the 52-week low stocks appear on the following Stockpickr portfolios:

• Today's Hot List: This daily list is a must-view at midday each day to see what stocks are making the biggest moves and why.
• Biggest % Losers: This is a list of stocks that lost big the day before, because they can snap back hard. When you check this list on Stockpickr, you can see which stocks are owned by the quality hedge funds and mutual funds. Pay attention to those. They will be buying at the lower prices, so you should be also.
• Stocks Most Likely to Surprise: This list features stocks that have gone down at least 10% in the last year but may be poised to surprise on the upside. In addition to being 10% down, a stock must have a PEG (P/E ratio divided by growth rate ) of less than 1 and an analyst rating of buy or strong buy to make the list.

If the stock appears on several lists, this gives you additional reasons for buying. You can then come up with your own trading strategies. You should, of course, back test any strategy you develop before using it with real money.

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