7 Best Cheap Stocks Under $20 to Buy Today

When an investor tunes into their favorite stock market show, the host will more than likely be talking about one of the Magnificent Seven stocks or some other large-cap growth stock. These big-name stocks grab most of the attention on TV and the internet because they are, generally speaking, the stocks that move the market up and down. That’s because most major market indexes are market-capitalization weighted, and big stocks with high valuations have more influence than smaller companies that may have lower share prices.

[Sign up for stock news with our Invested newsletter.]

Still, just because you don’t hear too much about low-priced stocks under $20 on Bloomberg Business, CNBC or Fox Business, doesn’t mean you should ignore or avoid them. There can be tremendous potential in lower-priced stocks, and neglecting them can cost you.

High-quality stocks that happen to be trading at below $20 often fly under the radar of Wall Street and the media. This can work to the advantage of investors who know where to look for them and are willing to do a little extra research. A small investor who uncovers value in a smaller or lower-priced stock will reap the benefits in capital appreciation when the market as a whole finally discovers what they already knew.

Another benefit to buying equities at under $20 a share is the simple fact that the lower the price, the more shares you can accumulate with your capital. While it’s true that the price of a stock, on an absolute basis, has very little to do with the fundamentals of the underlying company, it’s also true that even small dollar moves can mean larger percentage gains when you’re starting from a lower cost basis. For many investors, it’s also just more psychologically satisfying to own more shares of a company.

That’s the rationale behind today’s list of the seven best stocks under $20 that you should consider buying today. Each company on the list has the potential for significant growth or pays a superior dividend income. As mentioned above, these names should be researched individually before investing. You’ll want to be sure they fit into your portfolio and overall investment plan. Once you finish your homework, however, you may find that one or more are right for you:

Stock Market capitalization*
Paramount Global (ticker: PARA) $8.5 billion
Energy Transfer LP (ET) $63 billion
A2Z Cust2Mate Solutions Corp. (AZ) $326 million
Gladstone Land Corp. (LAND) $367 million
SentinelOne Inc. (S) $5.9 billion
AvePoint Inc. (AVPT) $3.8 billion
Couchbase Inc. (BASE) $1 billion

*As of June 12 close.

Paramount Global (PARA)

Paramount isn’t a small company — it has a market cap that tops $8.5 billion — but it does have a relatively low share price compared to some other mid- to large-cap stocks.

PARA is a leading digital media and entertainment company that provides premium content to viewers and subscribers through its famous brands like CBS, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, MTV, Paramount+ and Pluto TV. Modern entertainment is a challenging and highly competitive business, but PARA is well positioned for strategic growth in today’s media landscape.

PARA is focused on expanding its existing franchises and adding streaming subscribers. It’s had some notable success recently with films like “Gladiator II” and “Sonic the Hedgehog 3.” As a result, revenue at the company’s Filmed Entertainment division is growing at a healthy rate.

The company’s $8 billion merger with Skydance Media should close in the second half of 2025. When that happens, additional synergies and economies of scale should help unlock some value in this stock. PARA has a forward dividend yield of 1.6% and closed at $11.94 per share on June 12.

Energy Transfer LP (ET)

ET is a $63 billion midstream energy company that’s organized as a master limited partnership, or MLP. An MLP trades like a stock but may have different tax implications for unitholders. In energy investing, the term midstream means the storage, transportation and processing aspects of the hydrocarbon energy industry.

ET operates a vast network of energy infrastructure facilities. Its main line of business is the storage and transportation of crude oil and natural gas. The company controls over 38,000 miles of pipelines, with about 53% dedicated to natural gas and the rest to oil. It also owns several tank-based storage facilities located near major ports and waterways.

Because it operates on a fee-based business model that doesn’t depend on high energy prices, ET has a very reliable revenue stream. The company is required by law to distribute at least 90% of its taxable income to unitholders as a dividend. For this reason, ET should be considered an income vehicle rather than a growth stock. The forward dividend yield on ET is currently 7.1%, and shares closed at $18.45 on June 12.

A2Z Cust2Mate Solutions Corp. (AZ)

AZ is an automation company focusing on the grocery and brick-and-mortar retail industry.

The company calls its product the Smart Cart System. As customers shop and deposit items in a smart cart, each item is scanned and a digital receipt with a running total can be viewed by the shopper. If they change their mind about an item, it can be easily removed from the cart and deleted from the bill. When they are finished shopping, they pay for their entire order by inserting a credit card into an attached card reader. It’s fast and convenient for the customer and cost-effective for the retailer.

This small $329 million stock is catching the attention of investors. As of June 12, the stock was up 41.8% year to date to close at $9.39. This company isn’t right for more conservative investors, but aggressive traders who understand the risks of small-cap technology investing should give it due consideration.

[READ: 7 Best European Stocks to Buy Now]

Gladstone Land Corp. (LAND)

The Gladstone Companies are not a household name, but they are well known and well respected among investors in business development companies, or BDCs, and other specialty income stocks.

LAND is a very unique real estate investment trust, also called a REIT, that specializes in farm and agricultural properties. In fact, LAND and Farmland Partners Inc. (FPI) — another cheap stock under $20 — may be the only two publicly traded farm REITs trading on U.S. markets.

LAND has a market cap of $369.8 million, and owns 160 farms across the U.S. The company acquires the farms and then leases them out — piecemeal or in their entirety — on a long-term basis to successful farmers, ranchers and agriculture companies.

The company screens potential tenants carefully to be sure they know how to work the land. It also focuses on high-value, high-priced crops like nuts and berries to ensure good revenues for itself and its farmers.

LAND is a small company with special risks. It’s not for conservative investors, but it may be suitable for more aggressive, income-oriented people. The stock has a forward dividend yield of 5.3% and closed at $10.22 on June 12.

SentinelOne Inc. (S)

Cybersecurity is a booming business and a hot industry on Wall Street. SentinelOne is a $5.9 billion cybersecurity software firm based in Mountain View, California, that trades on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company’s flagship offering is called Singularity Platform. Singularity is one of only a few cybersecurity solutions powered almost exclusively by artificial intelligence technology.

Singularity learns from and adapts to whatever digital network it’s connected to. It works continuously 24 hours a day, seven days a week to detect, prevent and respond to potentially very costly cyber threats. A major focus of the platform is credentialing, meaning it denies access to bad actors and allows only authorized personnel access to sensitive systems.

Equity analysts recently increased revenue estimates for SentinelOne and now expect the company to generate close to $1 billion in sales in 2025 and $1.2 billion in 2026, an annual increase of about 20%. Shares closed at $17.88 on June 12.

AvePoint Inc. (AVPT)

You won’t often see a nearly $4 billion technology company that’s a global leader in its industry trading for under $20 a share, but AVPT is just such a company. With a specific focus on data management and corporate governance products, the company’s mission is to transform the digital workplace.

AvePoint’s software is designed to work in conjunction with the Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) subscription-based enterprise software, Microsoft 365. Microsoft 365 is used by more than 3.7 million businesses globally, giving AvePoint a huge potential customer base.

The system automatically saves an organization’s emails, team chats, documents and spreadsheets so employees, management and regulators have permanent access, allowing easy recovery if lost in a disaster or cyberattack. It also automates organizing and data management tasks in a structured and accessible manner. Shares closed at $18.96 on June 12.

Couchbase Inc. (BASE)

BASE is a $1 billion tech company on a mission to simplify database management for businesses.

The company’s premier product, Couchbase Capella, can organize and manage complex databases using a cloud-based platform it calls Couchbase Server. Another of its most popular offerings is called Couchbase Mobile. The mobile application allows an always-on user experience by enabling maximum data use and availability between mobile smart devices, even without an internet connection.

Couchbase’s software can support the fastest AI-driven enterprise applications and real-time analytics. In other words, it’s a cutting-edge platform that works with the world’s most advanced technologies.

BASE is a relatively small company with mega-cap partners. The company recently entered into partnerships with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud — two giants in the cloud computing infrastructure industry. BASE shares closed at $19.26 on June 12.

More from U.S. News

The 5 Best Robotaxi Stocks That Aren’t Tesla

5 Big Brokers With New Crypto Offerings

7 Best Agentic AI Stocks

7 Best Cheap Stocks Under $20 to Buy Today originally appeared on usnews.com

Update 06/13/25: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up