New York, Feb 7, 2026, 08:52 EST — Market is shut.
Shares of BigBear.ai Holdings, Inc (NYSE: BBAI) surged 15.7% Friday, ending the session at $4.72. That rally hauled the small-cap AI and defense player straight back into the spotlight for traders eyeing next week’s action. 1
This comes into play now because BigBear.ai is approaching a key shareholder vote that could nearly double its authorized share count—potentially smoothing the path to raising capital, funding acquisitions, or handing out equity awards, though not without diluting current shareholders. The company’s rescheduled special meeting lands on Feb. 18, with online ballots accepted up to late Feb. 17. 2
Derivatives traders piled in as stocks bounced. Friday saw a spike in options trades, with the put/call ratio at just 0.19, according to GuruFocus — that’s a level pointing to a wave of call buying over puts. 3
Coming off a rough session, the stock settled at $4.08 on Thursday—a 9.3% drop—with about 72 million shares changing hands, according to Yahoo Finance data. 4
The broader view remains unclear. Shares of BigBear.ai have slid roughly 36% in the past month, erasing a large chunk of gains from earlier, data from Simply Wall St. show. 5
Some of that spotlight has landed back on deals BigBear.ai flagged in January. The company announced on Jan. 21 it had acquired certain CargoSeer technologies—software touted to help customs officials identify high-risk cargo using computer vision and machine learning. CEO Kevin McAleenan said the move fits “directly” with BigBear.ai’s push into customs agency tech. 6
One week on, AD Ports Group in Abu Dhabi announced that its digital subsidiary, Maqta Technologies, has struck a partnership with BigBear.ai’s local unit to look into AI solutions for customs and logistics. Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, the group’s CEO, called the deal a “significant step” toward advancing digital trade and customs with artificial intelligence. 7
Right now, it’s all about the share count. BigBear.ai’s proxy lays out a request: bump up the number of authorized common shares to 1 billion from the current 500 million. McAleenan pushed back on concerns, saying this isn’t a move to “immediately issue and sell” those additional shares. 8
The mechanics work both ways here. Should shareholders sign off on the increase, investors will be on alert for any moves by the company to raise capital through equity—potentially putting pressure on shares if dilution becomes a concern. A failed vote, on the other hand, could box BigBear.ai in, limiting its options for funding growth, something market watchers have pointed out as a real risk around this proposal. 9
BigBear.ai tends to ride the waves of bigger AI and data-analytics stocks, only the moves get exaggerated—thanks to its smaller scale and a calendar packed with catalysts. The sharp move on Friday didn’t bring much clarity.
Investors are eyeing the Feb. 18 reconvened special meeting as the next major catalyst. What happens there—and any details on financing that emerge after—will shape sentiment as U.S. markets come back online and through the following week. 10
