Analysts love these 15 cheap stocks — and give one 250% upside

Published Sun, Apr 16 20239:02 PM EDT

Stocks are climbing — the S & P 500 notched its highest close since February on Thursday. Tech stocks in particular have been a bright spot despite the market volatility brought on by the banking crisis, with the Nasdaq up around 16% so far this year — beating the S & P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average. But investors still have to contend with uncertainty as analysts continue to warn of a recession this year. The U.S. Federal Reserve, too, expects the banking crisis to trigger a mild recession later this year, according to Fed documents . But could be opportunities amid the chaos, with a number of companies trading at steeper discounts on a price-to-earnings basis than they have in recent history. A price-to-earnings ratio is the current share price of a stock divided by its earnings per share. Forward P/E incorporates a company's forward-looking, estimated earnings per share from Wall Street analysts. Stock screen CNBC Pro screened for stocks in the S & P 500, Nasdaq Composite and MSCI World for cheap stocks with big upside. They met the following criteria: Stocks trading at a lower forward price-to-earnings ratio relative to their average five-year forward P/E multiple; "Buy" ratings from at least 40% of analysts covering them; Upside to average price target of 30% or more. A slew of U.S.-listed energy and tech stocks appeared on the screen. Energy names such as Exxon Mobil and Marathon Petroleum turned up, as well as some in renewables such as First Solar and Enphase Energy . First Solar and Broadwind Energy stood out for having among the highest potential upside on the list at 175% and 250%, respectively. Broadwind was trading at a higher discount to its average five-year forward P/E multiple, at -65%. Shares in the small Cicero, IL.-based company, which makes equipment for the energy industry, are up over 100% over the year to date, getting a boost from the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act. Of the stocks on CNBC's screen, Valero Energy is trading at the steepest discount at 95%. It had a buy rating of nearly 70%, and possible 52% upside. Three stocks had a 100% buy rating: electronic components maker Bel Fuse , Broadwind and pharmaceutical firm Harrow Health. The global stocks under MSCI World included mostly airlines, banks and financial services firms, as well as automakers. Qantas Airways and Lufthansa were trading at the steepest discounts at -73.6% and 68.7%, respectively. Lufthansa had the highest upside in the global list at 74.9%.