3 Small-Cap Stocks With Big-Time Upside

RGTI +1.01% CLSK +2.16% TMC -1.76%

Many of the most impressive growth stocks enter the public markets after they've already grown to a substantial size. We've seen such scenarios play out with many of the mega-cap tech names we see today, with private companies often opting to remain private for longer, given the substantial amount of capital in the world of private equity and venture capital.

Quick Read

• The Metals Company (TMC) extracts polymetallic nodules from the sea floor and recently gained permitting wins for its operations.

• Rigetti Computing (RGTI) is valued at over $8B as investors bet on full-stack superconducting quantum computing technology reaching commercial scale.

• CleanSpark (CLSK) is transitioning from pure-play Bitcoin mining to providing compute infrastructure for AI and machine learning applications.

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That said, it's also true that numerous hyper-growth opportunities are available in the small-cap space. Companies valued under $10 billion can offer some of the best upside if their business models succeed, and these companies demonstrate a clear pathway to profitability or steady growth that will ultimately lead to it.

The hard part is identifying this potential early enough to capture the maximum return over a given time frame. That's easier said than done.

Here are three stocks I've identified as potential long-term winners with market capitalizations of less than $10 billion (but significant upside, if they can dominate their respective industries).

The Metals Company (TMC)

In the world of speculative small-cap stocks, The Metals Company (NASDAQ: TMC) continues to be one of my top picks.

Shares of the little-known (but increasingly better-known) deep-sea mining company have been on a tumultuous ride of late, to say the least. Surging from around $1 per share to start the year to more than $10 per share, and then back below the $5 level in recent weeks, investors who didn't time their entry and exit points with this stock may be kicking themselves right now.

That said, I'm of the view that this is a long-term holding worth considering from that perspective. The company's business model of extracting polymetallic nodules from the sea floor in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone is notable, as the abundance of minerals simply lying on the sea floor is remarkable. Suppose TMC can replace a significant chunk of the above-ground mining activity. In that case, this is a stock that could quickly capture substantial market share in a multi-trillion-dollar market one day.

Of course, other competitors are looking to chip away at TMC's lead, and they just might. But with a notable head start and some recent wins around permitting for its operations, TMC is my go-to bet in this nascent sector. Rising significantly over the past month, there's a lot to like about this stock's near- and medium-term momentum, as investors seek next-generation options in the world of mining and metals recovery to support the continued growth in electrification and the rise of new technologies.

Rigetti Computing (RGTI)

Another extremely speculative stock, but one that's already shown some very impressive upside for early investors who have stuck with the growth trends in the quantum computing sector, is Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ: RGTI).

Valued at a little more than $8 billion at the time of writing, one could certainly make the argument that there's plenty of capital appreciation to be had with Rigetti, if full-stack superconducting quantum computing technology really does take off.

We'll have to see. There are several reasons why some investors are cautious about predicting that this technology is right around the corner. That's partly because quantum computing technology has been on the horizon for many years, and it remains a technology that's still challenging to replicate at scale.

While I believe that considerable work remains to be done to ensure Rigetti's technology is scalable for commercial clients, the timeline suitable for commercialization is clearly narrowing. This is a stock that could really take off on any sort of headlines made around real and meaningful breakthroughs. For those who believe in the underlying potential of quantum computing technology, Rigetti is one top names to keep on the watch list right now, for sure.

CleanSpark (CLSK)

I'm generally quite bearish on the future of crypto miners, but I'm starting to change my tune when it comes to companies like CleanSpark (NASDAQ: CLSK). Shares of the Bitcoin mining company have fluctuated significantly, creating considerable volatility that has primarily benefited traders in this name.

One of the reasons why CleanSpark has continued to fluctuate to such a high degree relative to the market (which has also been battling its own bouts of volatility of late) has to do with investors' broad assessments of how the company's transition away from being a pure-play crypto miner to more of a compute player is going.

CleanSpark has announced plans to position itself more as an infrastructure play on both the rise of digital assets, but perhaps more importantly as a partners for companies in the energy-intensive industries of AI and machine learning, among others. If CleanSpark can utilize its vast compute to support hyperscalers and other companies looking to ramp up their GPU capacity, there's plenty of profitability to be had. Indeed, the dollars that are flowing in this space seem to be endless, for now.

We'll have to see how this rollout ultimately unfolds, and whether the kind of profitability investors are now pricing in will eventually translate to CleanSpark's bottom line. For now, this is a compelling growth stock to watch, given its relatively low market capitalization and significant growth in 2026, which should attract potential investors to jump aboard.

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