Many investors think of penny stocks as the domain of day traders and meme stock investors. The reason is that penny stocks can carry outsized risk that many investors would rather avoid.
But penny stocks offer a distinct path to the type of 2x, 5x, 10x or more gains, than other group of stocks. However, like any other stock, you have to know what you own. If you're looking at penny stocks as long-term investments, you're looking at companies with staying power.
The classic definition of a penny stock is a stock that trades for less than $1 (i.e., for pennies). However, for the purpose of this article, we're defining penny stocks as any stock that trades for $5 or less. This has become the more accepted definition over time.
These stocks still allow you to buy up a significant block of shares at one time and allow you to benefit from significant upward price movement. If you have room in your portfolio for some speculative stocks, and the appetite for the risk that comes with them, here are three penny stocks to consider.
Bitfarms: A Deep-Value Play on Bitcoin Mining Expansion
An interesting shift is occurring as the need for infrastructure to accommodate artificial intelligence (AI) expands. Bitcoin miners are now pivoting to host companies that need high-performance computing (HPC) and AI infrastructure.
That's one reason why a company like IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) has rewarded investors with a gain of over 378% in 2025. With a price of under $50 per share as of this writing, IREN may not be expensive, but it's not a penny stock.
For that, you can look at Bitfarms Ltd. (NASDAQ: BITF). The small-cap company's stock is still up over 116% in 2025, and analysts believe it still has more than 40% upside ahead.
Small-cap penny stocks always bring the risk of shareholder dilution. And Bitfarms recently completed a $588 million convertible notes offering that helped it secure $814 million in liquidity. That will allow the company to continue upgrading its fleet with next-generation efficiency hardware.
Hopefully, dilution is out of the picture. The larger concern now is the price of Bitcoin, which is down significantly since hitting over $125,000 per coin in the summer of 2025. If the price continues to drop, it could put pressure on the company's growth plans. However, the opposite can also be true.
Grab Holdings: A Penny Stock with Real Revenue and Regional Scale
A common feature of penny stocks is that the companies aren't profitable and have little to no revenue. That's not the case with Grab Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRAB), which is why it deserves to be on your radar.
Grab is a large, established Southeast Asian digital-services platform. It's a "super app" that covers everything from ride-hailing, food delivery, logistics, and financial services. Its broad ecosystem continues to get traction through the region.
The company has been delivering double-digit year-over-year (YoY) gains on the top line. But the bottom line has been flat. That's why the stock is "only" up about 12.8% in 2025 and down approximately 11% in the 30 days ending November 28. However, analysts are bullish on GRAB stock with a consensus price target of $6.37 which would be an upside of nearly 20%.
While growth has slowed compared to its post-SPAC peak, Grab is steadily improving profitability. Cost discipline, rising transaction frequency, and better unit economics have helped narrow losses and push the company toward sustainable positive cash flow.
The Oncology Institute: Emerging Growth in Value-Based Cancer Care
The Oncology Institute Inc. (NASDAQ: TOI) has quietly built one of the most compelling value-based care (VBC) models in the cancer-treatment space. The company focuses on delivering evidence-driven oncology services at lower costs while improving patient outcomes.
This is a structure increasingly favored by insurers and Medicare Advantage plans. TOI's vertically integrated model includes clinical care, pharmacy services, and research, enabling it to manage costs while expanding access.
Recent expansions into new markets, better payer relationships, and early progress toward profitability have helped stabilize the company after a volatile post-SPAC period. While revenue growth has been steady, the real story is operational efficiency: TOI has been tightening expenses, improving care coordination, and leveraging its scale to increase margins.
TOI stock is up more than 880% in 2025, so the recent sell-off should be seen as a healthy pullback. The company is still unprofitable, but that is likely to change. Over 35% of the stock's float is held by institutions, which is impressive for a tiny stock. And with its likely inclusion in both the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 indexes in 2026, the stock could draw even more interest from institutional investors.
The Last Word on Penny Stocks
Penny stocks come with real risks, but they also offer some of the market's most asymmetric reward profiles. Bitfarms, Grab, and The Oncology Institute each bring a different catalyst — from crypto leverage to regional digital growth to healthcare transformation — giving speculative investors multiple angles for potential upside.
