Ask Matt: How to get a list of low-priced stocks

• Online screeners let you find stocks in any price range
• Price alone doesn't tell you much about a stock
• It's just one place to start

USA TODAY markets reporter Matt Krantz answers a different reader question every weekday. To submit a question, e-mail Matt at mkrantz@usatoday.com.

Q: How can investors get a list of all exchange-listed stocks trading between $2 and $5 a share?

A: Experienced investors know the share price of a stock, by itself, is practically meaningless. Even so, there are ways to find stocks that have share prices that fit in a band defined by an investor.

Using online stock-screening tools, you can quickly isolate stocks that trade between certain share prices. And this is especially important when looking at low-priced stocks — these online screeners only include stocks that are listed on an exchange, such as the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq.

Usually, the easiest place to look for a screener is with your online brokerage. Nearly all large brokerage firms provide fairly good screening tools that let you prospect for stocks with just about any characteristic. Nearly all these tools have share price filters.

USATODAY.com also provides a stock screening tool that can do exactly what you're asking. Just choose Price and unclick any other buttons. Then type in 2 to 5 in the criteria settings range. Don't try to use the slider. Click View Results to get the full list.

Remember, however, that the per-share price by itself doesn't tell you much about a stock, its future or its valuation. You need to compare it with similar stocks and look at a lot of other information to get any real insights.