One of the things about investing in small-cap companies is that there are just so many of them. With a bevvy of options, it’s not hard to get a little buried by all the different companies out there one could choose to invest in.
There are, however, certain small caps that, despite their small size, are attracting a lot of attention. And companies that are offering the sort of major returns that the small-cap investor is looking for. The companies are rising fast, and they aren’t doing it anonymously. So, here’s six small-cap companies that are averaging volume of more than 6 million shares a day and have more than double their value in 2013.
Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners (PSE)
Market Cap: $1.88 Billion
YTD Performance: 131.63 percent
Average Daily Volume: 17.48 Million
Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners is an Irving, TX-based oil and gas company working in Texas and parts of New Mexico. The company’s been on the rise since early May when it missed expectations on profits but beat them on revenues, feeding the perception that Pioneer’s a strong growth play. The company’s taken off like a shot since them, more than doubling share value since May 8.
DryShips (DRYS)
Market Cap: $1.38 Billion
YTD Performance: 114.06 percent
Average Daily Volume: 14.14 Million
Greek shipping companies seem to be where volatility goes to live, with double-digit swings on heavy trading coming what seems like every day. DryShips isn’t immune to these swings, but it’s also made the upswings stick since the middle of August, jumping almost 80 percent since August 20.
Himax Technologies (HIMX)
Market Cap: $1.81 Billion
YTD Performance: 345.42 percent
Average Daily Volume: 10.7 Million
Himax is a Taiwanese company that designs, develops, and markets semiconductors used in flat panel displays. Most notably, Himax’s liquid crystal on silicon microdisplays are used in the manufacture of Google (GOOG) glass. A fact that’s helped drive the company’s share price into the stratosphere this year.
Inovio Pharmaceuticals (INO)
Market Cap: $396.90 Million
YTD Performance: 318.42 percent
Average Daily Volume: 9.37 Million
Inovio’s focus is on the development of a new generation of vaccines, known as synthetic vaccines, that can be used to combat cancer and infectious diseases. The company’s stock started its epic run in early July after the company reported that 100 percent of injected animals using their inflenza DNA vaccine avoided infection from the H7N9 influenza virus in a preclinical study.
MannKind (MNKD)
Market Cap: $1.59 Billion
YTD Performance: 128.57 percent
Average Daily Volume: 7.42 Million
This development-stage pharmaceutical is focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of therapeutic devices for patients suffering from diseases like cancer of diabetes. None of which are a dirty sock puppet held over one’s face.
Yingli Green Energy (YGE)
Market Cap: $1.23 Billion
YTD Performance: 234.47 percent
Average Daily Volume: 6.28 Million
Yingli Green Energy has been an active participant in the major run solar companies have been on for most of the year. The Chinese panel maker has shrugged off concerns about a potential lawsuit from bankrupt American companies and powered forward into new territory.
