The definition of small cap can vary among brokerages, but generally it is a company with a market capitalization of between $300 million and $3 billion. One of the biggest advantages of investing in small cap stocks is the opportunity to beat institutional investors. The Deutsche Bank A.G. (NYSE: DB) small cap research team has come up with a list of top small caps to buy that may be very recognizable to investors. Because mutual funds have restrictions that limit them from buying large portions of any one issuer’s outstanding shares, some mutual funds would be unable to give the small cap a meaningful position in the fund.

Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) crushed second-quarter expectations with earnings per share (EPS) of $0.02 (beats by $0.03) and revenue of $507.7 million (beats by $24.36 million). As a result, its stock climbed higher by 17.41% on Thursday last week. The stock rallied not only because of its outstanding quarter, but also due to its solid forward guidance. Deutsche Bank has a $22 price target on this top telecom equipment name. The Thomson/First Call estimate is right in line at $22 as well.

SHFL Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ: SHFL) was a top momentum name for years. SHFL, formerly Shuffle Master Inc., sells slot machines, card shufflers and other gambling supplies. It said sales of electronic gaming machines rose 16% to $25.7 million, and revenue from table games, proprietary games and shufflers and other products all improved by smaller amounts. Deutsche Bank raised its price target from $20 to $22, while the consensus estimate is $20.

Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. (NASDAQ: ISLE) owns and operates 15 casino gaming facilities, primarily under the Isle and Lady Luck brands, in Mississippi, Louisiana, Iowa, Missouri, Colorado and Florida. Deutsche Bank has an $8 price target, which is the same as the consensus target.

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ANLY) has several growth catalysts that can be found, which has no doubt certainly encouraged big funds like BlackRock and T. Rowe Price to invest substantial amounts of money in this firm. The principal reason to believe in Alnylam’s growth potential is its intellectual property rights to a Nobel Prize winning technology based on RNA interference. Deutsche Bank has a $40 price target, but the consensus estimate is much lower at $31. A move to the target would represent a 30% gain from current trading levels.

Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) may be a small cap home run for investors. The company, which makes up 0.20% of the iShares Russell Microcap (NYSEMKT: IWC), has seen two directors and officers purchase shares in the past six months, according to the recent Form 4 data. Deutsche Bank as a whopping $17 price target, while the consensus is lower at $15. A move to the Deutsche Bank target would represent a 100% gain from current trading levels.

Proofpoint Inc. (NASDAQ: PFPT) is one of the many small cap names making a big splash in the cyber security field. In May, the company released the results of a survey conducted at two major information technology security conferences this year that indicate spear phishing, the precise targeting of malicious, email-borne attacks at specific organizationsm continues to be a serious threat. Deutsche Bank has raised its price target to $26 from $24. The consensus target is lower at $22.50.

Deutsche Bank’s research indicates that a simple strategy of buying the lowest volatility stocks (based on each stock’s trailing volatility) can be a very effective tool in narrowing down stocks in the small cap space. They have used that metric and other solid components when picking these top stocks to buy.

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