There are a number of established and well-known companies whose stock price is so affordable that investors can buy a decent number of shares with only $500. Not every stock price is as high as Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) or Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA). With a few hundred dollar bills in your pocket, you can make a decent investment with these stocks to buy.
We’re not talking about small-cap stocks. These are large-cap stocks, most of the them considered to be blue-chip companies on Wall Street and viewed as safe places to put money.
Here are seven stocks to buy with $500:
- Nokia (NYSE:NOK)
- JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU)
- Aurora Cannabis (NYSE:ACB)
- Carnival (NYSE:CCL)
- Ford Motor (NYSE:F)
- Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ:RIOT)
- Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO)
Stocks to Buy With $500: Nokia (NOK)
Nokia stock got a significant boost recently, after it was hyped on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum. NOK stock jumped more than 20% on January 25th after more than two million users on the Reddit site seized on the company following a positive analyst report. However, despite the recent spike, Nokia’s share price remains slightly above $5, placing it just barely out of penny stock territory.
For $500, investors could buy 100 shares of the Finnish telecommunications and information technology company. And, it may not be long before the day trader crowd sends this stock soaring higher.
Apart from the speculation, Nokia is actually a good investment currently given the company’s involvement in the 5G wireless rollout that’s now taking place around the world. Nokia is helping companies such as T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) launch their 5G networks.
The company is the largest 5G network provider within China and one of the largest globally, boasting about 25%. As 5G, which promises internet speeds that are 100 times faster than 4G, becomes the standard worldwide, Nokia shareholders should benefit. Analysts have a high price target on NOK stock of $6.14 a share.
JetBlue Airways (JBLU)
Airlines are expected to stage a comeback this year as the number of people inoculated against Covid-19 reaches critical mass. And among the big carriers, low-cost JetBlue Airways is set up to outperform.
JBLU stock is currently trading at just under $15 a share. The stock price has doubled since last March but remains 31% below its 52-week high of $21.65. That price was achieved before the global pandemic ground the aviation industry to a halt.
As an airline that specializes in flying to sunny destinations in the Caribbean, Mexico and South America, JetBlue will perform well once Americans start vacationing with a vengeance in the latter half of 2021. Consumer travel is forecast to return a lot faster than business travel, and that will certainly help JetBlue, which doesn’t even offer business-class seating on its flights. The low-cost carrier has also developed a loyal, almost cult-like following among bargain shoppers and price-conscious consumers. With $500, an investor could grab 33 shares of JBLU stock.
Aurora Cannabis (ACB)
Next on this list of stocks to buy with $500 is ACB. The stock has been red-hot lately, up 190% since the end of October. Yet Aurora Cannabis’s stock is trading at just about $12 a share.
Five hundred bucks will get an investor about 40 shares of this fast-rising cannabis company that is benefiting from the increasing legalization of the recreational drug. Several states voted to legalize cannabis use this past November, bringing the total number of states to allow adult use of the drug to 15. (36 states now allow cannabis use for medical purposes.) That news sent Aurora Cannabis stock on an upward trajectory, as investors expect the legalization movement in the U.S. and beyond to gain momentum.
To be fair, it has been a bumpy ride for Aurora Cannabis. Cannabis legalization, notably in Canada, has not gone smoothly. And ACB has made several strategic errors along the way, acquiring incompatible businesses, selling more stock to fund its operations and overestimating its capacity, to name a few missteps.
Yet, cannabis remains a huge industry with huge potential. The North America legal cannabis market is forecast to be worth $104.9 billion by 2027, according to market research firm ReportLinker. The market for cannabis is finally starting to mature.
Carnival (CCL)
In addition to getting on airplanes and flying to sunny destinations, people will return to cruise lines in droves once the pandemic ends. Cruise lines enjoy some of the most loyal repeat customers in any industry. People who enjoy taking cruises, enjoy them a lot. And Florida-based Carnival is the world’s biggest cruise line, not to mention one of the most popular.
With destinations stretching from the Caribbean to Alaska and throughout Europe, Carnival is sure to benefit from the resumption in travel that will take hold in the second half of 2021. While the industry continues to struggle amid the pandemic, sunnier days are on the horizon.
In terms of its share price, CCL stock has risen 156% from its doldrums last March when it was trading at $7.80 a share. Today, the stock is at $20 a share and has been trending higher since last fall.
With $500, an investor could nab about 25 shares of Carnival. And investors would be well-advised to buy those shares before the stock rises further. At its current price, Carnival stock is 56% below its 52-week high of $45.79 a share. While it might take some time for Carnival stock to completely recover, it continues to move in the right direction, making it a perfect pick for this list of stocks to buy.
Ford Motor (F)
Finally! Ford Motor stock has broken out. F stock has increased 41% since the end of October, rising from $7.70 to $10.88 a share. And the current rally may still have some steam left in it. The high price target on the stock is now $14 a share.
This current rally couldn’t come soon enough for beleaguered shareholders of the U.S. automaker, most of whom have been waiting years for Ford’s stock to break above $10 a share. And, at its current level, the stock remains extremely affordable. Investors could purchase about 45 shares for $500.
Much of the current rally can be attributed to Ford’s aggressive expansion into electric vehicles, as well as a recent management shake-up and the revival of many bestselling vehicles from the past, including the Bronco SUV.
All of the changes position Ford for future growth and success. And they should, hopefully, reward shareholders. After several failed turnaround efforts, many analysts on Wall Street are optimistic that new Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley, who started last October, will be the person to finally revive Ford’s fortunes for good.
Riot Blockchain (RIOT)
The year 2021 looks to be the one when cryptocurrency finally goes mainstream. A growing number of hedge fund managers and other institutional investors are taking positions in bitcoin (CCC:BTC) and Ethereum (CCC:ETH), while online payment companies such as PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) and Square (NYSE:SQ) are enabling customers to hold cryptocurrencies in their accounts and credit cards are allowing people to rack up reward points in cryptocurrencies. It seems that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are no longer relegated to the fringes of the investing community.
Investors who don’t have more than $30,000 to purchase a single bitcoin could put their money into the next best thing: Riot Blockchain. The company, which builds and operates the blockchain technology on which bitcoin is based, has seen its stock catapult higher over the past year. Its current price of $18.56 a share is an amazing 1,396% from a year ago.
Industrious investors could purchase 26 shares of RIOT stock with $500. But be warned that the stock tends to move in tandem with bitcoin. Investors need to be prepared to ride the highs and lows of this stock.
Marathon Oil (MRO)
My final pick for stocks to buy with $500 is MRO. Energy is the best performing sector of 2021 so far. After an absolutely horrible 2020, oil and natural gas are rebounding into the newyear, helped by rising demand and prices.
And among oil companies, Marathon is a bargain. The Houston, Texas-based company’s stock currently sits at $7.47 a share. However, that is more than double $3.12 per share, which is where it was last March when markets around the world effectively collapsed. Moving forward, MRO stock should rebound with the broader oil market.
Other reasons to be bullish on MRO stock include the fact that the company plans to reinvest up to 80% of its cash flow to maintain production and use the other 20% to help support its dividend, which currently yields a decent 1.47%. Marathon Oil has also announced plans for a share buyback and possibly a special dividend in 2021. With the price of crude oil now above $50 a barrel, Marathon Oil, and its shareholders, should have a much better year in 2021.
On the date of publication, Joel Baglole held a long position in TSLA.
Joel Baglole has been a business journalist for 20 years. He spent five years as a staff reporter at The Wall Street Journal, and has also written for The Washington Post and Toronto Star newspapers, as well as financial websites such as The Motley Fool and Investopedia.
