Now’s a great time to start considering which micro-cap stocks to buy.

Generally, micro-caps are stocks with a market capitalization of less than $300 million. With a cap like that, the company doesn’t have a ton of resources – which means that it could be forced to go into debt in order to grow, or it may not have enough wiggle room to withstand extended losses or mismanagement.

It’s not uncommon to see some of the most interesting micro-cap stocks to buy trading on over-the-counter indices rather than the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq.

If that’s the case with a company you’re considering, just keep in mind that OTC markets or pink sheets don’t have the same listing standards as the major indices. That means that as an investor you will likely have less information to go on as you make your decision to buy, sell or hold.

I’m using my Portfolio Grader tool to help us with an evaluation of some high-risk micro-cap stocks to buy. These names all have an “A” or “B” grade in the Portfolio Grader based on their earnings history, performance, momentum and other factors.

But a note of caution – don’t put too much of your portfolio into high-risk stocks. I like companies like this sometimes as a small portion of a portfolio because the rewards can be substantial. But in general, you never want to put more than 5% of your overall portfolio into a position or a group of stocks that would be considered high risk.

That said, let’s take a look at what the Portfolio Grader came up with.

BigBear.ai (BBAI)

BigBear.ai (NASDAQ:BBAI) uses artificial intelligence and other advanced technology to analyze information and to identify and manage risk. Its platform is used by manufacturing, hospitals and the government, particularly for defense and intelligence communities.

The Maryland-based company got a big boost earlier this month with a $900 million contract with the Air Force that identifies it as a prime contractor to compete for various task orders. The announcement sent BBAI stock skyrocketing from less than $1 to more than $3 in a single day.

Today you can get BBAI stock for about $2.35, which is still penny stock territory. But it’s still an increase of 221% in the last 30 days.

With its recent gains BBAI stock recently broke the $300 million barrier, and it carries a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Hudi International (HUDI)

China-based Hudi International (NASDAQ:HUDI) is another of the more interesting micro-cap stocks to buy.

The company had an incredible rise in the last few weeks, but has given back all of its gains and more, at least for now.

The trigger for Hudi was an announcement in November that the steel company would enter the clean energy technology space, with plans to build an anode materials production facility for the manufacturing of electric vehicle batteries.

The news sent Hudi from the mid-$20s to more than $200 per share – investors were definitely on board. But as it turns out, they were overreacting. Then when the company announced it would raise $25 million as part of a registered direct offering to raise capital – and dilute HUDI shares, the selloff continued in earnest.

Now it’s a few weeks later and Hudi shares are less than $6. But the company is still an interesting opportunity, and the share price is much more attractive than it was before the November boom-and-bust cycle.

On Jan. 19, the company announced it entered into a strategic partnership agreement with China Huanqiu Contracting & Engineering, which is a contactor of China National Petroleum Corp., the third-largest oil and gas company in the world. Hudi will be the first-tier supplier to Huanqiu for stainless steel seamless pipes and tubes.

Pipes and tubes may not be as exciting as EV batteries, but it’s still a profitable business, and that’s worth some attention, particularly at this price point. HUDI stock has a market cap of $81 million and carries a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Bellerophon Therapeutics (BLPH)

Based in Warren, New Jersey, Bellerophon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:BLPH) is a clinical-stage therapeutics company that is focused on treating cardiopulmonary diseases.

Its developing three products with its INOpulse platform, which uses target pulsatile delivery of nitric oxide to treat lung disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (CPOD) and hypertension.

The stock price went up 200% earlier this month when the company entered into a licensing agreement with Baylor BioSciences for the development and commercialization of the INOpulse platform. The deal was valued at $6 million.

Will Bellerophon gave up some of those gains, the stock is still up nearly 130% over the last three months. BLPH stock has a market cap of $22 million and a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Vivos Therapeutics (VVOS)

Vivos Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VVOS) is another medical company that’s seeing big gains in January. The company’s stock jumped 380% in a single day earlier this month when the Food and Drug Administration approved Vivos’ proprietary DNA appliance for mild-to-moderate obstructive sleep apnea.

The device opens the patient’s airways by expanding the palate and training the tongue to rest in a position to keep it from blocking the airway. It also helps transition patients from oral breathing to nasal breathing when they’re sleeping.

Shares were trading at less than 50 cents at the end of 2021, but rose to more than $2 on the FDA news. Today you can buy VVOS stock for about $1.30.

VVOS stock has a market cap of $33 million and carries a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Acer Therapeutics (ACER)

Acer Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ACER) is one of the more interesting micro-cap stocks to buy because it is up 112% in the last three months, following a huge jump in the stock price in December that sent shares from less than $1.50 to more than $4.

The jump appeared to be triggered by some bullish insider trading. Founder Christopher Schelling spent $1 million to increase his share of the company to 43%.

At nearly the same time, H.C. Wainwright analyst Vernon Bernadino issued glowing guidance, predicting commercial success for drugs in its pipeline and issuing a price target of $12. That’s upside of 664%. The company has a consensus price target from analysts of $9.67.

Acer Therapeutics recently won its first approval from the FDA, for its Olpruva drug for the treatment of patients with urea cycle disorders. Now sporting a market cap of $47 million, ACER has a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Hycroft Mining (HYMC)

If you follow meme stocks then you may have heard of Hycroft Mining (NASDAQ:HYMC), an exploration-stage gold and silver mining company based in Denver.

A year ago or so, meme stock darling AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC) bought a 22% stake in Hycroft. At the time AMC said the purchase was attractive because Hycroft had a depressed share price and some liquidity issues but ample gold and silver reserves.

Investors rushed in, briefly pushing HYMC stock from 26 cents to more than $2.50. But the novelty eventually wore off and today Hycroft shares are at 62 cents per share. To be fair, that’s a gain of 38% from a year ago.

Meanwhile, it’s hard to ignore the 9.6 million ounces of gold reserves Hycroft controls, or its nearly 446 million ounces of silver. There’s money to be had here should Hycroft be successful in developing the site.

HYMC has a market cap of $124 million and carries a “B” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

Armada Acquisition (AACI)

This is a company that isn’t quite fully formed yet – but part of being a micro-cap stock is accepting that there’s a higher element of risk. Armada Acquisition (NASDAQ:AACI) is a special purpose acquisition company that has a pending merger with e-commerce software company Rezolve. The merger was announced a long time ago – back in 2021 – and is expected to close by the middle of February.

Resolve, which is based in the U.K., uses AI to help businesses automate their service desk operations, establish workflows and manage tasks.

Share prices recently returned to the $10 range, which is the price of the Armada-Resolve IPO. That may indicate that there’s some hope that the long-awaited deal will finally close.

Armada has a market cap right now of $207 million and has an “A” rating in the Portfolio Grader.

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On the date of publication, neither Louis Navellier nor the InvestorPlace Research Staff member primarily responsible for this article held (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.