WTR Small-Cap Spotlight

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Joseph Lucosky, Managing Partner of Lucosky Brookman LLP, joins WTR's Tim Gerdeman to discuss his new seat on the SEC's Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee, NASDAQ's stayed $5 million continued listing rule, and Q2 2026 microcap IPO data showing the first signs of a thaw. Lucosky also covers the rise of direct listings and reverse mergers over the traditional IPO, and what foreign private issuers need to get approved on NASDAQ. For additional content, visit www.watertowerresearch.com.

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Cloudastructure Chairman and CEO James McCormick and CFO Greg Smitherman join WTR's James Kisner and Tim Gerdeman to discuss the company's cloud-native, AI-powered video surveillance and remote guarding platform, which deters 98% of threatening events and drives 99% customer retention. The conversation covers strong Q2 results, with subscription revenue up 164% year over year to $764K and gross margin reaching a record 49%, and the mix shift toward takeovers in the first half of 2026, which represented 77% of new cameras and accelerated the path to recurring revenue. McCormick and Smitherman also detail expansion beyond the multifamily beachhead, where Cloudastructure serves eight of the top ten property managers, into critical infrastructure, construction, and transportation and logistics, where cargo theft represents a $50 billion-plus problem in the U.S. The episode also covers two major leadership hires, CRO Nile Coates from ECAM and Chief Security and Operations Officer Ed Burnett from UPS, and the milestones on the road to cash flow breakeven by end of 2027. For additional content, visit www.watertowerresearch.com.

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Waheed Hassan, Founder and CEO of ZMH Advisors, joins Tim Gerdeman to break down shareholder activism and what small and mid-cap boards need to know before an activist comes knocking. Bloomberg ranks ZMH among the top five global strategic advisors for shareholder activism, and Hassan brings 25 years of experience across ISS, the Blue Shirt Group, and one of North America's largest proxy solicitation firms, with more than 300 campaign engagements including Jack in the Box, Cracker Barrel, Target, and Medallion Financial. The conversation covers why roughly 70% of activist campaigns now target small and mid-cap companies, the common profile of companies that end up in the crosshairs, and the anatomy of a campaign from quiet stake-building to public escalation or proxy vote. Hassan also walks through the defensive playbook boards should have in place, including stock surveillance, vulnerability assessments, board refreshment, and proactive engagement with index fund proxy voting teams, and the missteps that most often leave companies on the back foot. For additional content, visit www.watertowerresearch.com

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Ambiq Founder and CTO Scott Hanson joins WTR's James Kisner and Tim Gerdeman to discuss how the company's ultra-low-power semiconductors are enabling on-device AI across personal, medical, industrial, and smart-home markets. Hanson traces the origins of Ambiq's proprietary Subthreshold Power Optimized Technology (SPOT), spun out of the University of Michigan in 2010, and explains how it delivers a two- to fivefold reduction in power consumption versus conventional designs, unlocking edge AI use cases where latency, privacy, cost, energy, and availability all matter. The conversation covers the product roadmap, including the Apollo340 mass-market processor and the in-development Atomiq family, Ambiq's first system-on-chip built from the ground up for AI with an integrated NPU, plus the HELIA software stack that helps customers deploy AI faster. Hanson also outlines the longer-term opportunity to license SPOT into automotive, data center, and robotics, and building on five consecutive quarters of growth with a sixth guided, highlights near-term milestones including first customer samples, a production ramp targeted for late 2027, and more meaningful revenue in 2028.

For additional content, visit www.watertowerresearch.com. 

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, WTR Managing Director for Natural Resources Jeff Robertson joins Tim Gerdeman to assess the second half of 2026 and early 2027 budget outlooks for the U.S. energy sector. The conversation covers how producers are managing continued oil price volatility driven by the Iran conflict and Strait of Hormuz disruptions, with WTI averaging $81.25 in Q3 and futures pointing toward the low $70s through 2027.

Robertson walks through WTR's oilfield services coverage, addressing Select Water Solutions' water infrastructure margin expansion story, DNOW's MRC integration progress and path to $350 million EBITDA, and international opportunities for National Energy Services Reunited and Forum Energy Technologies across the Middle East, Argentina, and Venezuela.

The episode also covers WTR's U.S. producer universe, including Riley Exploration Permian, Ring Energy, HighPeak Energy, Evolution Petroleum, Prairie Operating, and W&T Offshore, as well as Africa-focused Meren Energy and VAALCO Energy, where development drilling campaigns in Nigeria, Gabon, and Cote d'Ivoire are positioned to drive production growth into 2027.

Robertson closes with takeaways from the EnerCom Conference and a preview of the WTR Virtual Insights Conference on September 22 to 23. For additional content, visit www.watertowerresearch.com.

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, First Phosphate CEO John Passalacqua joins WTR's Dmitry Silversteyn and Tim Gerdeman to discuss the company's recent NASDAQ listing and what it means for First Phosphate's next phase of development. The conversation covers the unique ADR structure that allowed the company to uplist without share consolidation or a dilutive capital raise, the 10x spike in trading volume following the opening bell ceremony, and how NASDAQ listing credibility is changing the company's conversations with institutional investors, sovereign lenders, offtakers, and government counterparties. Passalacqua also walks through the practical differences between the company's three trading venues, the sovereign-backed financing structure with G7 nations at the table, and what the NASDAQ listing means for First Phosphate's path from feasibility through final investment decision and construction.

For additional content: www.watertowerresearch.com

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In this WTR Small-Cap Spotlight showcase, host James Kisner joins virtually with WTR's Mike McCormack on the ground in Munich with Elena Coles, Head of Investor Relations at Circus SE (XETRA: CA1), the German AI robotics company building autonomous kitchen systems for commercial and defense customers. Coles walks through the portfolio: the flagship CA-1, which cooks up to six dishes in parallel on seven square meters and is deployed with Mercedes-Benz, REWE, Meta, and the Bundeswehr; the compact CA-A cup-based system from the Alberts acquisition; and the defense-focused CA-M, which replaces a field kitchen at roughly 5% of the staff. The conversation covers the Kitchen Robotics acquisition (30+ patents and NSF certification for US entry), a new proprietary ingredients program targeting up to 45% margins on a Nespresso-style razor-and-blade model, the Secura channel partnership into German industrial canteens, and the deliberate revenue shift from 2026 into a 2027 production ramp as CircusOS subscriptions and ingredient revenue scale with every deployed system.

For additional content, visit: https://www.watertowerresearch.com

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Comstock Inc. CEO Corrado De Gasperis joins WTR's Peter Gastreich and Shawn Severson to follow up on questions submitted by investors during the company's recent fireside chat. De Gasperis provides an update on the ramp-up of Comstock's Nevada solar panel recycling plant, its competitive advantages over rivals, and how a proposed EPA hazardous-waste rule could unlock feedstock supply. The conversation also covers silver recovery economics, the approximately $300 million Silver Springs land and power monetization opportunity, the balance sheet position ahead of the pending $20 million Mackay payment, the outlook for Bioleum, and the broader path to profitability. 

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Drone Volt Chairman Stefano Valentini joins WTR's Senior Equity Research Analyst Dr. John Roy and Tim Gerdeman to discuss the company's solid first half 2026 results and its strategic evolution toward higher-value Drone-as-a-Service operations. The conversation covers Drone Volt's position as an aeronautical manufacturer specializing in professional civilian drones and artificial intelligence, its global footprint spanning France, Benelux, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, the United States, and Switzerland, and how its turnkey business solutions and drone pilot training offerings are driving the shift to a more recurring, service-oriented revenue model. 

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In this episode of the WTR Small Cap Spotlight, Brazil Potash CEO Matt Simpson joins WTR's Dmitry Silversteyn and host Shawn Severson to discuss the company's Autaz potash project in Brazil's Amazonas state and the series of developments systematically de-risking the path to construction. The conversation covers the recent passage of Brazil's Pro-Fert legislation, which could eliminate approximately $190 million in construction costs through tax exemptions and mandates that preferential government funding be given to domestic fertilizer projects, as well as the latest favorable TRF-1 court rulings affirming the validity of the project's environmental permits and the indigenous consultation process. Simpson also walks through the company's $63 million treasury position, ongoing FEED engineering work, build-own-operate-transfer contracts, and the construction financing milestones investors should watch over the next six to 12 months as the project advances toward a targeted final investment decision.