Main in small-caps: BuzzFeed deal, bets on AI boom, forecast from BNP Paribas AM

Media mogul Byron Allen buys a controlling stake in BuzzFeed - he wants to "bring it closer" to YouTube with the help of AI. Hedge fund Greenlight Capital named small-cap stocks ready for a turnaround, and BNP Paribas AM summarized its quarterly results and named sectors with growth prospects. The main small-caps news for Ma 11-15 are in our review.

The family office of media manager Byron Allen Allen Family Digital plans to buy a controlling stake in the media platform BuzzFeed for $120 million. Based on the terms, the value of one share is about four times the closing price of trading on May 11 - the day before the announcement of the deal. At trading on Ma. 12, BuzzFeed shares closed with a growth of about 100%, in the moment their value jumped to 150%.

BuzzFeed, the once "brash news site" known for quizzes, memes and recipe videos, capitalized on the venture capital boom but never became profitable. Allen plans to grow it by "approaching" YouTube with AI. "Allen's connections to talent will attract incredible stars to the BuzzFeed platform," current BuzzFeed CEO and founder John Peretti revealed of the revitalization plans. He will become CEO of BuzzFeed's new AI division.

The only Wall Street analyst tracking the company recommends holding its stock, with a target price of $1, 25% below its current value.

BNP Paribas Asset Management experts told in their podcast the main reasons for the growth of small-caps in the first quarter of 2026. Among them: improvement of the macroeconomic background in the US, expectations of Fed policy easing and the AI-infrastructure boom, which supported small-cap semiconductor, equipment, construction and energy companies.

In the future, BNP Paribas AM expects that support for small-caps may continue, provided de-escalation in the Middle East. Among the most interesting segments BNP Paribas AM experts name small and medium capitalization banks, early cycle industry, cybersecurity and certain software companies capable of adapting to the development of agent-based AI.

In AI-infrastructure BNP sees a risk of overvaluation after a strong rally, while in the software and healthcare segments some companies already look undervalued after the sell-offs at the beginning of the year, according to BNP.

What else is there to read?

- The manager of Royce Investment Partners, an investment company, told us which three companies have earned the long-term trust of one of its small-cap funds. Which companies are they? - in the article "Biotech, online auction and data analysis: three promising small-caps from the Royce fund".

David Einhorn, founder and chief hedge fund manager of Greenlight Capital, known for his focus on "hard cases" with a chance to turn around, has named five such stocks with upside potential. Four of them are small companies:

Acadia Healthcare is an operator of psychiatric hospitals and clinics with a Nasdaq capitalization of nearly $2.4 billion. The company's stock could nearly double from its current value, to $56, if the company manages to increase occupancy at new facilities and negotiate better terms with insurers, Einhorn said.

Versant Media, a $5.7 billion capitalization media company, could generate significant cash flow, according to Greenlight Capital.

Fluor Construction Corporation, which is capitalized at $6.2 billion on the New York Stock Exchange, is well-positioned thanks to a boom in capital investment in data centers and energy infrastructure, David Einhorn points out.

Victoria's Secret, a lingerie seller with a capitalization of $3.7 billion, has stabilized revenue, but its margins are suffering from U.S. import duties, Einhorn notes. He estimates that this will begin to recover by 2027, at which time the company's share price will rise by a third of its current value.

MarketWatch has highlighted four stocks of small tech companies that have outperformed Big Tech in growth over the past year. Amid the AI boom, investors are increasingly looking for little-known companies with high growth potential. On MarketWatch's list: data center chip maker MaxLinear, chip and equipment cooling fluid delivery system maker Ichor Holdings, semiconductor components and subsystems developer Ultra Clean and semiconductor testing device provider Cohu.

While MarketWatch's selected stocks have gained more than 200% over the past 12 months, the largest U.S. technology companies have shown more subdued performance. For example, the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF, an exchange-traded fund tracking shares of the seven largest U.S. technology companies, added 46% over the same period.

Fervo Energy (FRVO) is developing next-generation geothermal projects. It offered 70 million shares at $27 apiece - above its previously announced and already revised price range ($25-26) - and raised $1.89 billion in the IPO.

The company calls itself a pioneer in the development of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) technologies for clean energy production. In 2025, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, impressed by a visit to the company's construction site, wrote on the Gates Notes blog, "Geothermal energy is one of the most promising ways to provide reliable and affordable clean energy." However, the company itself warned in its IPO prospectus that it is making losses every year and may never be profitable due to constant changes in the markets.

Blackstone Digital Infrastructure Trust (BXDC) , a real estate investment trust specializing in buying data centers and leasing them to large corporations, raised $1.75 billion in an IPO. The company placed 87.5 million shares at $20 apiece and granted the underwriters an option to purchase additional securities. If exercised, the offering would raise $2 billion and the number of shares outstanding would be 100.6 million.

Analysts see great promise in this sector, as the need for AI infrastructure is only growing: in particular, Mark Lipschultz, co-CEO of Blue Owl, a Blackstone competitor, noted "unprecedented demand for data center capacity."