8 Tech Penny Stocks to Buy Now

Many of these picks are up 100% in the past year

Technology stocks have been on a tear lately, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq outperforming the Dow Jones Industrial Average 17% to 13% across the last six months. But it’s worth noting that many small-cap tech stocks have done much better than that, while blue chips like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) have all underperformed.

You can see the power of the tech sector best in small, agile penny stocks that are surging recently. I of course don’t mean penny stock in a literal sense – as a rule, any micro-cap pink sheet or OTC investment that goes for only a few cents a share is a massive gamble. By “penny stock” I mean ultra low-priced companies, but ones that are larger than $100 million in market capitalization.

To help you share in the tech penny stock surge, consider these 8 investments and their recent gains:

Sirius XM Radio Inc: Year-to-date, stock of Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up +13%. Sirius offers satellite radio content on music, sports and news in the United States for a subscription fee. In the last 12 months, SIRI has gained an impressive +112%, compared to much smaller gains by the broader markets.

ICO Global Communications: Mobile satellite service operatorICO Global Communications (NASDAQ: ICOG) has posted an impressive stock gain of +132% in the last 12 months. More recently, this penny stock is up +44% in the last 30 days alone. If bought at the right time, ICOG can be great for your portfolio, as it jumped +40% in one day in March. ICO Global is an example of how explosive tech penny stocks can be.

• Related Article: 10 Best Stocks for 2011

8×8 Inc: Known for its telecommunication services, 8×8 Inc. (NASDAQ: EGHT) has gained +19% year-to-date. Looking in the longer term, EGHT is up +86% in the last year. This quarter, analysts are predicting EGHT will posted EPS of four cents, up from two cents last year. But percentage-wise, that’s a 50% increase! This shows how just a small jump in earnings can really mean big things for a penny stock in the tech sector.

EMCORE Corp: Offering a wide range of semiconductor products, EMCORE Corp. (NASDAQ:EMKR) has experience a jump in stock price of +119% since the beginning of 2011. This stock has also jumped +73% since the beginning of February, and posted a quarterly revenue growth of +23% in its last income statement. This penny stock has a 52-week range of 71 cents to $3.25 – but just touched its high a month ago before the March contraction. There’s no reason EMKR stock can’t get back to those levels very soon.

• Related Articles: Dividend Stocks to Buy

Dot Hill Systems Corp: Provider of storage systems and enterprise server software, Dot Hill Systems Corp. (NASDAQ: HILL) is another penny stock worth keeping an eye on. Year-to-date, this tech stock has gained +70%, compared to a gain of just +7% for the Dow Jones. In the last 12 months, this stock has soared +101% as well.

Identive Group Inc: Focusing on identification-based technologies, Identive Group Inc.(NASDAQ: INVE) has watched its stock gain +7% year-to-date and +47% in the last 12 months. Shareholders of INVE can also point to the company’s quarterly revenue growth, which was reported as +111%, in its last income statement.

RAE Systems Inc: Known for providing wireless sensor networks that enable its customers worldwide to identify safety and security threats in real-time, RAE Systems Inc. (AMEX: RAE) has the potential to grow your portfolio in a hurry. Over the last year, this penny stock is up +115%. In September, RAE stock jumped +42% in just three days, showing the penny stock’s short term potential. Buy this penny stock as it trades just below its 52-week high of $1.88.

Mad Catz Interactive Inc: Known for its video game accessories, Mad Catz Interactive Inc.(AMEX: MCZ) has been the highest performing stock on this list. In the last year, MCZ is up an incredible +381%. The success has continued as of late, as this penny stock has gained +115%, year-to-date. A quarterly revenue growth of +91% and a quarterly earnings growth of +73%, only add to this stock’s impressive resume.