That's the good news. In the worst case, there's Steven Madden, whose founder was indicted on 17 counts of stock fraud and conspiracy in June. And that's the problem with low-priced stocks. They can be very good and very bad. Find out why it's cheap - and why it should rise.
Cheap stocks can stay cheap for a long time.
Sam Stewart, Robert Kern and Eugene Sit would continue with their original picks. Small starts If small stocks are just too scary, try bigger stocks. Brokerages used to charge extra if you bought fewer than 100 shares at a clip. Now, most charge the same price for 10 shares as for 100, says John Markese, president of the American Association of Individual Investors. And some Internet brokerages will help you build up small positions at low cost.