15 Best Stocks Under $15

Ramish Cheema
11 min read

In This Article:

In this piece, we will take a look at the 15 best stocks under $15. If you want to skip our take on the economy and the stock market, then head on over to 5 Best Stocks Under $15.

July has been the tone setting month when it comes to the future of the U.S. economy. Throughout the month, multiple data sets have been released which indicate that not only does inflation appear to be cooling down but the economy might also remain resilient enough to avoid a recession that has been feared since mid 2022. The latest bit of economic data, that might have changed the status quo about what to expect from the economy and even the stock market later this year is the fresh GDP report from the Commerce Department. According to this data set, the American economy grew by 2.4% in the second quarter of 2023 - a figure that appears quite remarkable when we consider that output actually reduced in Q2 2022. The 2.4% GDP growth rate marked an acceleration over Q1 2023, and at the same time, while both total and disposable incomes grew, the rate of their growth slowed down as a tighter credit environment takes hold.

The effects of this data on the stock market were rather muted as investors, already wary of the Federal Reserve's relentless tendency to raise interest rates, were fearful that the stronger economy gives the central bank more room to increase the rates by avoiding damage to the economy. In fact, the U.S. economy growth rate data came a day after the bank had raised interest rates by 25 basis points to take them to a 22 year high. As part of comments made with his decision, Fed chairman Jerome Powell pointed out that his staff was not forecasting a recession in the U.S. this year, and considering the rapid rate of interest rate hikes, the bank can afford to take a break and evaluate the economy before it delivers more hikes.

At the same time, if the wage and labor market does not significantly slow down, then the Fed might raise rates even more if it thinks that higher incomes keep inflation above the bank's target range of 2%. On top of prices, the Commerce Department's economic growth data also outlined that the gross domestic purchases price index increased by 1.9% in the second quarter, slowing down from the 3.8% reading in Q1 2023. The Fed's preferred metric, the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) index without the impact of food and energy was up by 3.8% for a good drop over Q1 reading of 4.9%.

Another crucial data set that can serve as a crystal ball of sorts for the rest of the year is earnings. Big firms often share their expectations for the short term, and on this front, we're lucky since corporate heavyweights such as McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD), Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski shared that his firm has not seen consumer sentiment shift and in fact it might be on a recovery trajectory to meet 2019 levels. This is probably due to the fact that higher disposable incomes have enabled people to keep up spending, and McDonald's is seeing strong interest from people earning between $45,000 and $100,000.

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