Top 20 Small Public Companies In America

-Top 20 Small Public Companies In America
-According to forbes magazine.

1.) Lumber Liquidators

-Started in 1994 by building contractor Thomas Sullivan, who sold surplus wood at bargain prices. Today the Toano, Va,. company sells 150 varieties of flooring at more than 170 stores in 45 states. Longer store hours, a commission-driven sales staff and plenty of marketing savvy have helped in the housing downturn.

2.) Allegiant Travel

-Operates a low-cost airline serving resort locales such as Las Vegas and Orlando. Chief Executive Maurice Gallagher receives a cash bonus only if profits (in the sense of earnings before interest and taxes) exceed 5% of sales. He's collecting: The Las Vegas company's 11% margin last year was among the highest for airlines in the U.S.

3.)Quality Systems

-This Irvine, Calif., outfit sells software that manages electronic medical records. Should get a shot in the arm from the $20 billion in medical records subsidies enacted in last winter's stimulus legislation.

4.) LHC Group

-Hungry Lafayette, La.-based acquirer of home health care companies, now in 18 states, provides nursing, rehabilitation, hospice and long-term care.

5.) Green Mountain Coffee Roasters

-Its gourmet java, sold through coffee shops and grocers, still pours in a recession. Sales at the Waterbury, Vt., company have jumped 56%, and the stock has tripled in the last 12 months.

6.) Transcend Services

-Converts doctors' notes into legible digital files, either by hand or using speech recognition software. Revenue per customer (there are now 230 of them) has increased 79% in the past two years.

7.) Rackspace Hosting

-Provides cloud-computing services (applications that run on off-site servers) to 51,000 customers. Employees (or Rackers) compete for a monthly Straightjacket customer service award. Shares of the San Antonio company have risen 77% since its initial offering last year.

8.) NVE

-This Eden Prairie, Minn., company uses nanotechnology to make miniature sensors (some weighing less than a mosquito) for medical devices. The smallest member of our list, with sales of $25 million, is also one of the most profitable, with a net margin of 43%.

9.) American Public Education

-Operates two for-profit online schools geared toward veterans and public service employees like firemen and teachers. The Charles Town, W. Va., company offers 76 degree programs, in fields ranging from homeland security to business administration, to 53,000 students in more than 100 countries.

10.) American Science & Engineering

-Makes X-ray systems that sniff for drugs and weapons. The Pentagon in January awarded the Billerica, Mass., outfit a $39 million contract for its rugged trailers that screen suspicious vehicles for bombs.

11.) Dolby Laboratories

-Develops technologies for high-quality audio and surround-sound entertainment in theaters and in consumer electronic products like DVD players, televisions and mobile devices. Billionaire Ray Dolby founded the San Francisco company in 1965 after playing an integral role in developing the first videotape recording system.

12.) HMS Holdings

-Provides insurance-benefits coordination for government-sponsored health care programs. New York City firm benefits from rising unemployment and growing numbers of people on Medicaid, its biggest client.

13.) Synaptics

-Designs user-interface hardware for PCs and electronic devices. The Santa Carla, Calif., touchpad maker teamed up with Microsoft to homogenize touchpad and screen navigation gestures. EPS growth has more than doubled in the last 12 months.

14.) Jos. A. Bank Clothiers

-Hampstead, Md., retailer sells men's clothing and apparel online and through 460 stores in 42 states. Despite a dismal retail environment, revenue at the 104-year-old company jumped 14%, to $727 million, in the last 12 months.

15.)PetMed Express

-Pompano Beach, Fla., company markets prescription and nonprescription pet medications and products directly to consumers through its Web site and 1-800-number.

16.)Medifast

-Makes weight-management products--bars, shakes, soups, supplements and whole meal packages. Owings Mills, Md.-based company's earnings per share grew 75% over the last 12 months.

17.)Orion Marine Group

-Houston company provides marine construction services (dredging, repair and maintenance) for projects in the Gulf Coast, Atlantic Seaboard and Caribbean basin. Key to its strength: an armory of specialized heavy equipment, from retrofitted hydraulic cranes to "push boats" that move barges around a job site.

18.) MSCI

-Manhattan outfit sells financial data and tools, under the MSCI and Barra brands, to investment firms. Products include stock indexes and portfolio management software.

19.)InterDigital Inc.

-Develops wireless-communication software that makes cellphones work. King of Prussia, Pa., outfit connects wireless phones to their networks and manages the transport of signals between the two. Firm's shares took a hit in August after a U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) judge favored Nokia in a patent-infringement case.

20.)Capella Education

-Provides post-secondary online education services--including bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs--through its subsidiary, Capella University. Minneapolis, Minn., company offers online courses in a wide range of specializations, from health care and higher education to business management and public safety.

Posted in: Top 20 Small Public Companies In America