It has not been easy for investors in 2025. Unless you are invested purely in gold miners, the likelihood is that your ASX share portfolio will be trading lower for the year.
But every cloud has a silver lining. That silver lining is that ASX stocks are trading at deep discounts to what investors were willing to pay just a few weeks ago.
With that in mind, here are three dirt cheap, buy-rated shares that could be top picks for investors after recent weakness. They are as follows:
GQG Partners Inc. (ASX: GQG)
The team at Macquarie thinks that this investment company's shares could be dirt cheap at current levels.
The broker currently has an outperform rating and $3.00 price target on its shares. This implies potential upside of almost 50% for investors from current levels. A very large dividend yield is also expected in FY 2025.
Commenting on the company's recent performance, the broker said:
3yr and 5yr performance exceeds benchmark for the 4 primary strategies, while 1yr performance is below benchmark. The return to net inflows in Jan and Feb 2025, following flat flows in Nov and Dec 2024, is positive.
IPH Ltd (ASX: IPH)
Another ASX stock that could be seriously undervalued is intellectual property services company IPH.
That's the view of analysts at Macquarie, which have an outperform rating and $6.75 price target on the company's shares. This suggests that they could rise 50% over the next 12 months.
Commenting on the company, the broker said:
We view IPH as fundamentally cheap. Despite difficult trading conditions and weak volumes, IPH beat Macquarie and Visible Alpha (VA) consensus expectations in 1H25 by ~5%. Forecast earnings are supported by Canadian synergies and gearing will continue to fall (ND/adj. EBITDA was 1.6x at Dec-24), supported by attractive cash conversion.
Reliance Worldwide Corporation (ASX: RWC)
Over at Goldman Sachs, its analysts think that this plumbing parts company's shares are great value right now.
The broker recently put a buy rating and $6.00 price target on the ASX stock. This implies potential upside of 40% for investors.
Goldman likes its defensive earnings and cheap valuation. It said:
The business is defensively positioned given 80% of its US revenues are derived from the more stable R&R end market. This is supported by an aging US housing stock that has a substantial backlog of repair work. This will help insulate earnings from any deterioration in the housing market, a key driver of the business. […] RWC has valuation support, trading at a lower NTM EV/EBIT compared to the 5yr average of 8%. We are Buy-rated on the stock.
