Trading low priced Micro cap and penny stocks is a "High Risk High Reward" style of trading. I have found that one of the most profitable ways to trade these stocks is by finding the bottoms. If you are correct and find the bottom, the stock has nowhere to go but up. If you are wrong and miss the bottom, no one wants to "catch a falling knife".
When a stock is bottoming, it has dropped to a new recent low.This could be as dramatic as the lowest price in years or something as simple as a 50% pullback from recent highs. At this point the stock may begin to stabilize (trade sideways). This could mean that the stock is now poised to rise again in price, but it could also be preparing for another move lower.
With micro caps and penny stocks it is always easy to find stocks that look like they're at their bottoms. It seems that every night we are analyzing a hundred different stocks that have recently broken their downtrend. If you are unsure of how to find stocks in up trends or downtrends, try a stock screener.
Once you think you've found a stock that is technically ready to begin that profitable trend to new highs, it is now time to do your homework. Fundamentally there are many things to look for. There are so many that I can only give you a brief overview. You will want to read the filings and news to understand the companies share structure, current operation, and if there are any future events that may cause the stock to rise. Some of the more important items you will be searching for in the filings are operating shares, authorized shares, float and warrants.
When you have found a stock that is bottoming with a solid share structure and is due to release great news, such as a new product or strong earnings. This is probably a good time to buy. Prepare to hold on, stocks in this market have been known to rise thousands of percentage points in a short amount of time