Growth stocks are often expensive in that they trade with high valuations like price-to-earnings (P/E) and price-to-sales (P/S) ratios. Yet, these high valuations might be justified if the company can continue to grow at a rapid pace. However, today, we’re going to look at a few of the best cheap growth stocks to buy.
By “cheap” I don’t just mean that the stocks are attractive from a valuation perspective, although they are. They are cheap in the truest sense of the word, in that they are also the best low-cost growth stocks to buy. Each of today’s picks trades for less than $10 a share.
None of the high-potential low-cost stocks below are well known. Their relative obscurity is part of why they’ve been flying under investors’ radars. But given their growth potential and the fact that you can pick up shares for the price of a fast food meal, investors might want to consider taking a bite.
Terran Orbital (LLAP)
Florida-based space-tech company Terran Orbital (NYSE:LLAP) makes small satellites for the aerospace and defense industries. The stock has struggled since going public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger in October 2021 that valued the company at $1.8 billion. Today, it has a market cap of around $186 million and a share price of just $1.28.
While the stock has been beaten up, it holds immense promise, and not just because a small move in the stock price can result in a large percentage gain. Although shares did surge more than 70% in a single day in February after the company announced a $2.4 billion deal with Rivada Space Networks to build 300 satellites for the wireless communications company. Terran Orbital began receiving milestone payments in connection with that deal in April.
Additionally, leading U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) has taken a massive stake in the company. In late 2022, Lockheed Martin upped its total equity stake from 9.4% to 33.5% with a $100 million investment in Terran Orbital. Earlier in 2022, Lockheed selected Terran Orbital to produce 42 satellites for the U.S. Space Force’s Space Development Agency in an agreement valued at approximately $700 million.
LLAP has a three-year revenue growth rate of 63.4%, better than 96% of the industry, and is trading at 1.7 times sales, which is better than 51% of its peers.
While the stock is not widely covered by analysts, of the five who do, four rate it a “buy” with an average price target of $6.37, implying upside of nearly 400%.
ASE Technology Holdings (ASX)
ASE Technology Holdings (NYSE:ASX) is a Taiwan-based chip firm. It isn’t a foundry like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM), though. Nor does it design chips and outsource their production like Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA). Instead, ASE Technology Holdings packages and tests circuits.
Shares are up 28.5% this year to trade around $8. Despite its sub-$10 share price, the stock is a less-volatile choice than some other big-name chip stocks that face boom-or-bust cyclical trends.
While analysts are predicting a decline in ASE Technology Holdings’ revenue and earnings this year, they are forecasting increases of 10.5% and 34%, respectively, in 2024. Further, ASE’s three-year revenue growth rate of 17% is better than 64% of the industry.
Furthermore, shares look extremely undervalued based on multiple metrics. Its forward P/E of 13.5% is better than 84% of its peers, while its P/S ratio of 0.8% is better than nearly 88% of the industry.
If chip packaging and testing firms get a bit of the limelight, shares could pop.
Zymeworks (ZYME)
Zymeworks (NASDAQ:ZYME) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. Shares are up 10% year to date and 22% over the past 12 months. The stock is volatile, trading in a range between $4.11 and $10.80 per share over the past year.
In 2021, Zymeworks generated $26.7 million in revenue. In 2022, revenue increased more than 15-fold to $412.5 million. The reason for the revenue spike was a one-time $325 million payment by Jazz Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:JAZZ) to develop Zymeworks’ cancer drug zanidatamab. The company will also receive royalties related to that sale.
While sales are expected to decline to $66.6 million this year, that’s still up nearly 150% from 2021. And 2024 sales are expected to hit $116.3 million. That’s up 75% on a year-over-year basis and would be a quadrupling of revenue in three years.
On the valuation front, ZYME stock is trading at 3.4 times earnings and 1.3 times sales, which is better than 94% and 93% of the industry, respectively.
On the date of publication, Alex Sirois did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.