Fifteen small-cap stocks—predominantly under the technology sector—are taking center stage this year, boasting triple- to quadruple-digit performance in their share prices, thanks to the booming Artificial Intelligence sector.
In this article, we will dive into their performance and evaluate whether these stocks are poised to become the next big winners for your portfolio.
To come up with the 15 hottest small-cap stocks, we only considered companies with more than $3 million in trading volume and less than $2 billion in market capitalization.
A person with stock market data on a laptop. Photo by Anna Nekrashevich on Pexels
15. AmpliTech Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPG)
AmpliTech Group’s involvement in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) boom sent the company’s share prices soaring by nearly 200 percent over the past five years, and by 101.01 percent in the past 52 weeks.
The company’s stellar five- and one-year performances were reflective of investors’ confidence in the company—despite not being profitable yet—over expectations that it is one of the many technology companies to ride the booming AI industry.
In recent news, AmpliTech earlier received another Notice of Allowance from the US Patent and Trademark Office for its patent application related to MMIC LNA Designs.
Upon issuance, AmpliTech will then have three key patents, all of which are expected to strengthen its position in producing systems and components for 5G, Quantum Computing, and Satellite communication industries.
14. Quantum-Si Inc. (NASDAQ:QSI)
Quantum-Si, a protein sequencing platform, offers semiconductor chips designed to enable single-molecule next-generation protein sequencing and genomics and digitize proteomic research in order to advance drug discovery and diagnostics beyond DNA sequencing.
Over the past year, investors have posted confidence in the company’s prospects, as reflected in a 100-percent increase in its 52-week price to $4.10 per share.
Its earnings performance is also beginning to reflect its growth potential, with quarterly revenues soaring by 252.9 percent year-on-year to $787,000 while gross profit similarly rose by 239 percent during the same period.
Just recently, Quantum-Si entered into a series of partnerships with Avantor, for its NGPS portfolio in the US and Canadian markets, and with Planet Innovation to commercialize the Platinum Pro by mid-2025, alongside continued development of the Proteus platform.
Quantum-Si’s unique business as a platform provider rather than a pharmaceutical player positions its stability and scalability. As long as the company maintains consistent revenue growth and strong institutional backing, the company will continue to present a compelling investment opportunity.
13. BigBear.ai Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BBAI)
BigBear.ai—a company providing technology to analyze organization’s data and help make data-driven decisions—posted a stellar performance over the past year, booking a 96 percent in its share price, with growth expected to carry over the next few years.
BigBear.ai is among the roster of companies riding the rapid growth in the AI sector alongside partnerships with military and non-military customers.
In October this year, BigBear.ai bagged a five-year contract with the US Army to power the latter’s plan of becoming a data-centric fighting force.
Just recently, it partnered with Denver International Airport for the installation of biometric verification technology, as well as with the Heathrow Airport in London to develop and deliver advanced technologies at Europe’s largest airport.
The MSA allows for a wide range of potential projects. The partnership between BigBear.ai and Heathrow aims to improve security and operational effectiveness while enhancing the overall experience for travelers through the UK’s hub airport.
BigBear.ai provides cutting-edge solutions to help airports ensure traveler safety and streamline operations, leveraging a comprehensive Vision AI portfolio (including image-based anomaly and threat detection), advanced analytics, and digital twin capabilities.
12. Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Broadcom Inc., like any other chipmaker, benefited from the growing demand for AI tools and programs.
During the past 52 weeks, shares of the company have grown by 119.94 percent, while its five-year stock price marked a whopping 690.14 percent jump.
Broadcom continues to be a leader in the AI ASCI and networking chips market. It has ongoing deals with Alphabet and Meta in addition to many other technology giants aiming to massively spend on AI hyperscaling.
Despite booking a whopping $58 billion in net debt, which is relatively high, analysts remained positive about the company’s prospects, placing positive earnings bets of as much as 20 percent for the firm beginning the first quarter of 2025.
Analysts, however, noted that the market will not be kind to Broadcom’s stocks when its revenue growth rate slows.
11. Ceragon Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ:CRNT)
Shares of Ceragon Networks rose to an all-time high in the past 52 weeks, up by 140.35 percent to $5.48 per share. Its five-year performance, however, grew at a faster rate of 147.96 percent, indicating strong investor confidence.
Like many technology and quantum-related stocks, Ceragon has benefited from the rapid growth of the AI industry.
Ceragon is a leading solutions provider of end-to-end wireless connectivity, specializing in transport, access, and AI-powered managed and professional services.
According to analysts, the company maintains a great financial health score of 3.25, setting price targets of up to $10, reflecting investor confidence. This is supported by robust fundamentals including a 13.6 percent revenue growth and a healthy price-to-earnings ratio of 20.8.
10. Gevo Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO)
Gevo Inc., an American renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels company, has been outperforming its industry over the past few days—growing at a faster rate of 30.92 percent versus the industry’s 4.5 percent growth.
Investors were generally optimistic about its growth prospects, as indicative of its 141.96-percent stock price increase in the past 52 weeks and a 19.38-percent rise over the past five years.
The company also earned bullish outlooks from investment research companies. On Monday, Gevo earned a “buy” rating from Zacks Investment Research upgraded its outlook for the firm, now projecting a 24.2-percent higher full-year earnings estimate.
Gevo stands at the forefront of the biofuel revolution by producing low-carbon renewable fuels designed to replace conventional fossil fuels. Their proprietary technology transforms sustainable feedstocks into energy-dense, clean-burning fuels with substantially reduced greenhouse gas emissions which perfectly aligns with new regulatory shifts targeting net-zero carbon emissions.
9. AirShip AI Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AISP)
Analysts covering AirShip AI posted a generally positive outlook on the company, giving it a “buy” rating and a $6 price target in mid-November.
In the past year, the company’s stock price rose to as high as 194.48 percent at $5.33 apiece, reflecting a bounce and more confidence from investors after clocking in a 45.33-percent drop over the last five years.
The Washington-based firm operates an enterprise AI data management platform with key use cases of border monitoring, law enforcement, defense, and commercial enterprise, and is an AI player in accelerating threat environments across government, public safety, and commercial markets, the analyst said. With a market capitalization of $187.99 million, it is considered a micro-cap company but is growing at a fast rate.
The stock also garnered an extremely bullish sentiment (84/100) among watchers, and message volume has also stayed at extremely high levels.
8. NextNav Inc. (NASDAQ:NN)
NextNav is a company that develops positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) solutions that use spectrum to provide location services.
Over the past year, the company’s stock price was already up by 191.68 percent to close at $13.50 apiece, while five-year share prices rose at a slower pace of 23.33 percent.
An analyst who was bullish about NextNav gave the company a high estimate of $20 apiece and an average target of $13 each.
Based on the consensus recommendation from three brokerage firms, NextNav Inc.’s average brokerage recommendation is currently at 2.3, indicating “outperform” status. The rating scale ranges from 1 to 5, where 1 signifies Strong Buy, and 5 denotes Sell.
7. Sangamo Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMO)
Shares of Sangamo Therapeutics have been up by 164.71 percent in the past year, reflecting investor optimism, despite booking declines in its five-year performance.
Analysts posted a more bullish outlook for the company, setting a price target of $7 in the latest research last month.
In other news, the company recently terminated a partnership with Pfizer for their hemophilia A gene therapy co-development agreement. Following the termination, Sangamo now regains the rights to develop giroctocogene fitelparvovec, an investigational gene therapy product candidate for the treatment of adults with moderately severe to severe hemophilia A.
Sangamo said it intends to explore all options to advance the program, including seeking a potential partner to collaborate with.
6. Gorilla Technology Group (NASDAQ:GRRR)
Shares of Gorilla Technology rose by more than 245 percent in the past year to hit a new all-time high of $25.86 apiece with investor optimism fueled by a 425-percent revenue growth.
The surge represented a significant milestone for the company reflecting a period of aggressive growth and investor confidence.
In other recent news, Gorilla Technology Group Inc. has seen a substantial increase in its financial performance. The company reported a 189 percent jump in its revenues year-on-year, reaching $64.7 million and with a net profit of $19.9 million.
Recent developments also include the appointment of Thomas Sennhauser, a seasoned executive from Intel Corporation to its Board of Directors, alongside former Bank of America executive Keith Levy.
Sennhauser is expected to play a huge role in the company, including guiding the strategic direction as it seeks to expand its operations and strengthen its market foothold. Additionally, the company also appointed Bruce Bower as its Interim Chief Financial Officer.
5. Clover Health Investments Corp. (NASDAQ:CLOV)
Clover Health saw its shares jump by 238 percent in the past year to finish at $3.38 apiece, with investor confidence boosted by the company’s 74-percent improvement in earnings performance, having narrowed its net loss to $8.8 million from $33.6 million reported in the third quarter of 2024.
Clover Health is a healthcare firm that provides Medicare Advantage plans in the United States. It operates through two segments—insurance and non-insurance.
According to the company, the rally came as investors reacted to its impressive strides towards becoming profitable.
In addition, better earnings performance can be attributed to higher revenues from its insurance business, which grew by 9 percent to $322.6 million during the period, driven by strong member retention and continued intra-year growth.
For this year, it expects its AI assistant platform to further position itself towards success.
4. Butterfly Network Inc. (NYSE:BFLY)
Shares of Butterfly Network soared by more than 246.72 percent over the past year as investor confidence was buoyed by higher-than-expected revenues of $21 million, which beat analyst expectations.
Following the results, three analysts covering Butterfly Network have upped their revenue projections for the company to $95.3 million. If met, this would reflect a sizable 25 percent improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months.
Losses are also expected to fall significantly by 27 percent to $0.34.
Previously, the analysts posted a consensus of $91.7 million revenue projection and $0.39 per share in losses.
With a relatively tight range of estimates, it appears that analysts are confident in their valuations, which suggests that Butterfly Network is either a straightforward business to forecast or that they are relying on similar underlying assumptions.
3. Palladyne AI Corp. (NASDAQ:PDYN)
Shares of Palladyne AI Corp. surged by more than 1,286.96 percent to close at $9.57 apiece, with its stellar performance fueled by news on December 30 that its drones successfully tracked moving targets for the first time.
Palladyne’s Pilot AI platform was used on a third-party small drone, identifying and prioritizing targets of interest. Once the drone identified a target, Pilot AI enabled it to continue tracking the target as it moved.
Palladyne co-founder and CTO Dr. Denis Garagic said that he expects the company to finish commercialization of Palladyne Pilot by the end of the first quarter of 2025 and believes small, economical drones will be able to offer the same level of artificial intelligence as bigger, multimillion-dollar drone systems.
2. Red Cat Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:RCAT)
Red Cat Holdings, a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, saw its shares soar by more than 1,630.49 percent to finish at $14.19 apiece.
Analysts attributed the surge in investor confidence to a strategic partnership with Palantir, as well as a wave of mysterious drone sightings in New Jersey and other Northeastern states. Wall Street expected that these events could lead to increased funding for the industry.
The partnership announcement came amid growing interest in the sector, spurred by recent drone sightings across the Northeast that have also raised national security concerns.
However, FBI officials clarified on Thursday that there was no evidence to suggest the drones pose a threat to national security and public safety. They further stated on Saturday that many of the sightings were likely misidentifications of manned aircraft as drones.
1. KULR Technology Group (NYSEAMERICAN:KULR)
KULR Technology, surged to an all-time high on Thursday after the energy storage provider made its foray into Bitcoin investing, pouring in as much as $21 million in the cryptocurrency asset.
In the past year, shares of the company were up by 1,635 percent to end at $3.47 each, while the five-year stock price posted a 139.31-percent increase from its current valuation.
Investor confidence was fueled by news that the company bought 217.18 bitcoins, and said it plans to purchase more. As part of its Bitcoin treasury strategy, the company said it will allocate up to 90 percent of its surplus cash towards buying Bitcoin.
Investors of the cryptocurrency asset have been rewarded with huge returns this year as the cryptocurrency soared to new highs following the reelection of Donald Trump, who has previously signaled that he wants to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet.”
While we acknowledge the potential of KULR as a leading AI investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as KULR but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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