In Monday’s trading, the major indexes were all in positive territory with the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.13%, 0.45%, and 0.03%, respectively.
While that might not be a significant move, it still produced a notable number of new 52-week highs. On the NYSE, there were 145 new 52-week highs, 2.4 times the number of new 52-week lows. On the Nasdaq, the high/low ratio was even higher at 2.9x.
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While the new 52-week highs are numerous, the new 52-week lows have captured my interest.
Typically, I’m not a believer in buying low-priced stocks when searching for value. However, when it comes to new 52-week lows, I’m willing to make an exception.
Sometimes, a contrarian value play isn’t so contrarian, or too good to be true.
To make things interesting, I’ll select three names that are value plays in my opinion, and whose share prices add up to $75 or less.
Value Line (VALU)
Value Line (VALU) hit its 20th new 52-week low of the past 12 months at $32.16. Its shares closed at $32.65 yesterday. They are down 14.42% over the past 52 weeks.
It’s been a long time since I’ve thought about Value Line. Once upon a time, one of the only places for a young high school student like me to read their investment publications was the library. I definitely couldn’t afford the annual subscription.
Since Value Line’s share price hit an all-time high of $118.40 on Aug. 1, 2022, they’ve lost 72% of its value. It’s not coincidental that Value Line’s revenue of $40.5 million in fiscal 2022 (April year-end) was the highest it had been since 2011, and the highest since then.
Interestingly, one of the reasons for the higher revenue in 2022 was the $2.33 million gain on the forgiveness of its PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loan through the SBA (Small Business Administration).
There is no question that Value Line has struggled to compete with the likes of Morningstar (MORN) and others for investor readership. However, its digital revenue consistently ranges from $15.5 million to $16.5 million, providing solid recurring revenue.
What makes it a value play is that it has given Eulav Investment Management the right to use the Value Line brand for its investment management business. Value Line receives profits and revenues from Eulav for its non-voting interests in the business.
In the latest 12 months ended Jan. 31, it received $19.75 million from Eulav, accounting for 66% of its $29.48 million in pre-tax income. It has to do very little work for this income.
Yet, its shares are trading at a P/E of 14.0. It hasn’t been this low since 2011. With a 7.6% increase in its quarterly dividend with the May payment, the annual payment of $1.40 yields a high 4.3%.
If you’re income-focused, Value Line is an excellent way to have your cake and eat it too, especially at current prices.
Enovis (ENOV)
Enovis (ENOV) hit its 14th new 52-week low of the past 12 months at $20.82. Its shares closed at $21.94 yesterday. They are down 26.0% over the past 52 weeks.
For these next four, I probably won’t write as much. Value Line’s non-operating income generation got me wound up. I love special situation stocks.
In April 2022, Colfax separated itself into two separate public companies by spinning off its fabrication technology business, ESAB Corporation (ESAB), and rebranding its medical technology business as Enovis.
Colfax shareholders received one new share of ESAB for three shares of the parent. As part of the separation, Enovis did a 1-for-3 reverse split. The day before the separation, Colfax shares closed at $39.06. Today, if held since, the three shares in Colfax would be worth $111.44 ($89.50 for ESAB and $21.94 for ENOV), about $7 less than before the separation.
All of the decline is due to Enovis. Its share price has been on a gradual decline since March 2024.
What’s the problem? Analysts don’t seem to have a problem with it.
Of the 13 covering it, 11 rate it a Buy (4.62 out of 5), with a target price of $43, double its current price. The analysts expect it to earn $3.65 per share in 2026 and $3.98 per share in 2027. It trades at just 5.5 times the 2027 estimate.
What’s interesting about Enovis is that it’s become a no-growth company, yet it has grown revenue in every first quarter since the April 2022 separation. Further, it expects organic revenue growth of 5% at the midpoint of its 2026 guidance with adjusted earnings per share of $3.63.
Its Reconstructive business is growing revenue at double digits per quarter, accounting for 54% overall. In addition, its adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) margin in Q1 2026 was 22.8%, double that of its Prevention & Recovery segment.
The best news is that it’s working to grow its free cash flow conversion from around 10% in 2025 to 25% this year. Based on a $3.63 a share estimate for 2026 and 57.6 million shares outstanding, the $209.1 million in approximate net income would result in free cash flow of $53 million, 1.6 times what it generated in 2025.
That could be the catalyst to increase its valuation multiples.
Conagra Brands (CAG)
Conagra Brands (CAG) hit its 39th new 52-week low of the past 12 months at $12.76. Its shares closed at $12.86 yesterday. They are down 43.5% over the past 52 weeks.
The value destruction at Conagra is undeniable.
As recently as January 2023, the packaged food company, whose iconic brands include Hunts, Vlasic, Birdseye, and Orville Redenbacher’s, traded in the low $40s. Now, it’s awfully close to single digits, somewhere it hasn’t been since January 1991.
You’d have to be living on a deserted island not to know that legacy packaged food companies haven’t done well in recent years as consumers sought out healthier eating habits.
But doing less well -- its Q3 2026 revenue of $2.79 million was the lowest third quarter since 2019 -- doesn’t mean that it can’t grow both the top and bottom lines in the future.
As of June 1, Conagra has a new CEO in John Brace, the former Chief Operating Officer of J.M. Smucker. He replaces Sean Connolly, who had held the top job since joining the company in March 2015.
Brace has his work cut out for him.
In the trailing 12 months ended Feb. 22, Conagra’s operating margin was 12.0%, the lowest in a decade. In its Q3 2026 report, the company said that it expects its adjusted operating margin in fiscal 2026 (May year-end) to be around 11.5%.
One can only hope that this is the bottom on which to build momentum in fiscal 2027.
For now, as with Value Line, the dividend might be the most attractive aspect of CAG stock. The $0.35 quarterly dividend, which it has maintained since the August 2023 6.1% increase, yields a very high 10.9%.
In the past 12 months, through Feb. 22, it has paid out $669 million in dividends from $842 million in free cash flow. That’s 7.5% of revenue, 580 basis points lower than the margin in fiscal 2020, its highest free cash flow generation over the past decade.
As far as I can tell, the margin shouldn’t get much worse, which means the dividend is safe. And it’s more than double the 5-year Treasury rate.
Worst-case scenario, your CAG stock becomes a good place to park your money. If you’re patient, I think it could be more than that.
On the date of publication, Will Ashworth did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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