Buy 5 Small-Cap Stocks on a Rally in 2025 Set for More Gains in 2026

Small-cap stocks have rebounded this year supported by a low-interest-rate regime adopted by the Fed. The central bank reduced the benchmark lending rate by 1% in 2024 and another 0.5% in 2025. The Fed is expected to reduce the Fed fund rate by another 25-basis points this week. Year to date, small-cap benchmarks Russell 2000 and the S&P 600 are up 13% and 5.3%, respectively.

Small businesses are generally dependent on cheap sources of credit for their survival. These companies operate on a thin profit margin, and most new businesses take time to achieve profitability. Therefore, a gradual decline in the benchmark interest rate will help this space immensely.

Moreover, these companies, smaller in size, offer growth potential, and their market capitalization may increase subsequently. Less international exposure makes small-cap funds less vulnerable to a stronger U.S. dollar. However, they are also expected to be more volatile than large and mid-cap companies.

At this stage, we recommend five small-cap stocks that have skyrocketed in 2025 and have more room to grow in 2026. Importantly, each of these stocks sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

These companies are: Allot Ltd. ALLT, Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. SHIP, Isabella Bank Corp. ISBA, Owlet Inc. OWLT and Intellicheck Inc. IDN. 

The chart below shows the price performance of our five picks year to date.  

Allot Ltd.

Allot is a provider of network intelligence and security solutions for service providers and enterprises. ALLT’s Allot Secure Management platform provides end-to-end security management infrastructure. This platform contains Allot NetworkSecure, Allot HomeSecure, Allot DNSecure, Allot IoTSecure, Allot BusinessSecure, and EndPoint Secure and Allot Secure Cloud.

Allot has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 13.3% and 15.9%, respectively, for next year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year’s earnings has improved 4.2% over the last 30 days.

Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp.

Seanergy Maritime is a prominent pure-play Capesize ship-owner that provides marine dry bulk transportation services through a modern fleet of Capesize vessels. SHIP’s operating fleet consists of vessels.

Seanergy Maritime has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 8.2% and 39.1%, respectively, for next year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year’s earnings has improved 30.9% over the last 30 days.

Isabella Bank Corp.

Isabella Bank is the parent holding company of Isabella Bank, a state-chartered community bank. ISBA offers personal and commercial lending and deposit products, as well as investment, trust, and estate planning services through Isabella Wealth. In addition, ISBA provides mobile and Internet banking, investment management, trust and estate services, automated teller machines, and insurance products.

Isabella Bank has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 9.4% and 16.3%, respectively, for next year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year’s earnings has improved 15.4% over the last 60 days.

Owlet Inc.

Owlet provides a digital parenting platform that aims to give parents real-time data and insights to help them feel calmer and more confident. OWLT provides sock monitors, including Dream Sock, a wearable infant health monitor equipped with pulse oximetry technology that tracks vital signs, such as pulse rate, activity, oxygen level, and sleep patterns, 

OWLT also offers BabySat, which is intended for infants with conditions, including respiratory syncytial virus, pneumonia, bronchitis, croup, and other diagnoses, and Owlet Smart Sock, which provides real-time heart rate and oxygen readings in the Owlet Care App.

Owlet has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 22% and 79.7%, respectively, for next year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year’s earnings has improved 27.3% over the last 30 days.

Intellicheck Inc.

Intellicheck is a leading technology company, developing and marketing wireless technology and identity systems for various applications including: mobile and handheld wireless devices for the government, military and commercial markets. Products include the Defense ID system, an advanced ID card access control product currently protecting over 70 military and federal locations. 

IDN’s ID-Check is a technology that instantly reads, analyzes, and verifies encoded data in magnetic stripes and barcodes on government-issue IDs from approximately 60 U.S. and Canadian jurisdictions to determine if the content and format are valid. 

IDN’s products are used to address government and commercial fraud, focusing on age verification, secure access control and software tools, driver's license readers, and ID validation markets. Intelli-Check Mobilisa sells its products through its direct sales force and marketing partners.

Intellicheck has an expected revenue and earnings growth rate of 10.3% and 66.7%, respectively, for next year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for next year’s earnings has improved 66.7% over the last 30 days.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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