BigBear.ai (BBAI) Stock Is Up 20%: What's Going On?

Shares of BigBear.ai Holdings Inc BBAI are soaring Monday morning, continuing a period of intense volatility, seemingly driven by recent company developments. Here’s what investors need to know.

What To Know: The momentum builds on several key announcements from June. The company, which specializes in AI-powered decision intelligence, confirmed the deployment of its biometric passenger processing software at major international airports, including JFK and LAX.

This deployment, a product of its Pangiam acquisition, is in partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to streamline arrivals.

Earlier in the month, BigBear.ai also announced a strategic partnership with Easy Lease PJSC to accelerate its expansion into the United Arab Emirates, a move CEO Kevin McAleenan called a "major first step" internationally.

Driving Monday's sharp price increase is the stock's market structure. With a substantial short interest representing 44.85% of the available float, the stock is a prime candidate for a short squeeze.

This phenomenon occurs when a rapid price increase forces bearish investors to buy back shares to cover their positions, further fueling the upward rally and attracting high retail investor interest.

Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, BBAI is trading up nearly 20% to $6.99 Monday morning. BBAI has a 52-week high of $10.36 and a 52-week low of $1.16.

Read Also: BigBear.ai Deploys Enhanced Passenger Processing Biometric Technology at Major Ports of Entry, including U.S. and International Airports

How To Buy BBAI Stock

By now you're likely curious about how to participate in the market for BigBear.ai – be it to purchase shares, or even attempt to bet against the company.

Buying shares is typically done through a brokerage account. You can find a list of possible trading platforms here. Many will allow you to buy “fractional shares,” which allows you to own portions of stock without buying an entire share.

In the case of BigBear.ai, which is trading at $7.06 as of publishing time, $100 would buy you 14.16 shares of stock.

If you're looking to bet against a company, the process is more complex. You'll need access to an options trading platform, or a broker who will allow you to “go short” a share of stock by lending you the shares to sell. The process of shorting a stock can be found at this resource. Otherwise, if your broker allows you to trade options, you can either buy a put option, or sell a call option at a strike price above where shares are currently trading – either way it allows you to profit off of the share price decline.

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