10 Best Small-Cap Value Stocks to Buy Now

5. Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE)

Forward P/E Ratio as of March 19: 9.52

Market Capitalization as of March 19: $342.27 million

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 29

Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) produces low-carbon fuels and operates through the Ethanol Production and Agribusiness and Energy Services segments. It produces, stores, and transports ethanol, distiller grains, and renewable corn oil. It also engages in grain procurement, and commodity marketing, and provides essential grain drying and storage services to producers.

The company is repositioning its Ethanol Production segment and shifting from a phase of innovation to a focused commercialization strategy. Despite challenges that resulted in a net loss of $54.9 million in Q4 2024, the Ethanol Production segment achieved $44.7 million in EBITDA for the full year 2024. The company’s ethanol plants operated at a 92% utilization rate during Q4 and are targeting a consistent mid-90s rate in 2025. This excludes the temporarily idled Fairmont facility.

A pivotal initiative for this segment is the implementation of carbon capture technology at its Nebraska plants, which is expected to commence in H2 2025. It’s projected to contribute ~$130 million in annualized financial contribution while utilizing a $70 per ton private carbon credit value. Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) is increasing corn oil yields, with the potential to produce ~300 million pounds annually. Each 10-cent increase in corn oil value translates to an additional $30 million in EBITDA.

Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) shareholders are poised for significant gains through a near-term company sale, driven by activist pressure and favorable market conditions. White Brook Capital Partners stated the following regarding the company in its Q3 2024 investor letter:

“Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) management and board continue to find themselves under activist scrutiny with long-term shareholders consolidating around a sale of the company. A small but underappreciated debt instrument that prohibited the company’s sale was paid down on October 1st and so the review process and consideration by potential acquirers that should have begun during the 1st quarter, can now lead to actionable behavior. As it stands, management and the board are staring at an embarrassing proxy contest they will overwhelmingly lose in early 2025 if they don’t sell the Company in the fourth quarter or early in the first. As collaborating evidence, an industry comparable transaction occurred during the third quarter that supports shareholder contention that a significantly higher stock price can be achieved through the company’s sale, in whole or in parts. We expect movement in the short term.”