While passive-income providers tend to be established large-capitalization enterprises, that’s not always the case as these under-$10 dividend stocks prove.

To be sure, nothing is for free on Wall Street. If you want cheap passive income, you can get exactly that but it will cost you; specifically, we’re talking about higher-risk investments. Nevertheless, this profile also implies that – should the stars align just right – these companies can also facilitate robust capital gains.

It’s your call. However, if you’re the gambling type that also wants rewards that stem beyond active speculation, check out these under-$10 dividend stocks.

Seanergy Maritime (SHIP)

A shopping company, Seanergy Maritime (NASDAQ:SHIP) engages in the seaborne transportation of dry bulk commodities worldwide. Per its public profile, the company operates a fleet of 17 vessels. Because of the uncertainties of the global economy, it’s a risky idea for under-$10 dividend stocks. Still, if conditions turn out more favorably than expected, SHIP could fly higher.

If historical performance is anything to go by, Seanergy is a name to watch. Throughout fiscal 2023, the shipping specialist beat Wall Street’s consensus bottom-line targets. Its best performance came during the second quarter, when experts anticipated a loss per share of 5 cents. Instead, Seanergy posted earnings per share of 3 cents, leading to a 160% positive surprise.

For the current fiscal year, analysts are looking for EPS of $1.19 on revenue of $147.52 million. Last year, earnings landed at only 12 cents per share. Also, revenue sat at $110.23 million. While the forward annual dividend is only 1.19%, the upside potential makes SHIP stock quite intriguing.

Crescent Point Energy (CPG)

Falling under the oil-and-gas exploration and production (upstream) segment of the hydrocarbon space, Crescent Point Energy (NYSE:CPG) operates fossil-fuel properties in Canada and the U.S. It focuses on crude oil, tight oil, natural gas liquids, shale gas and natural gas reserves. Fundamentally, I like CPG as one of the under-$10 dividend stocks due to geopolitical relevance.

Basically, Russia’s military belligerence shows no sign of abating. Like it or not, that stands to be bullish for crude oil. To be fair, it’s true that Crescent’s earnings performance in fiscal 2023 was all over the place. Yes, it had a great quarter in Q4. Overall, though, the average surprise in the last four quarters came out to 19% below breakeven.

Still, analysts are looking for tremendous growth in fiscal 2024, anticipating sales of $3.18 billion. That would be 35% above last year’s tally of $2.36 billion. Combined with Crescent’s forward yield of 4.16%, CPG makes for one of the top under-$10 dividend stocks to consider.

Hudbay Minerals (HBM)

Operating under the basic materials ecosystem, Hudbay Minerals (NYSE:HBM) is a diversified mining company. It focuses on the exploration, development, operation and optimization of properties in North and South America. Predominantly, it specializes in copper concentrates that contain gold, silver and molybdenum. Should inflation be worse than expected, HBM could offer a nice little hedging play.

To be fair, Hudbay presents a high-risk opportunity among under-$10 dividend stocks. In fiscal 2023, the company’s quarterly surprise came out to nearly 76% below breakeven. That’s not great. However, there has been improvement. In Q3, the negative surprise was “only” 30%. In Q4, Hudboy posted EPS of 20 cents against an expected target of 12 cents per share.

For fiscal 2024, experts believe that EPS will land at 38 cents on sales of $1.91 billion. In contrast, last year’s print was earnings of 23 cents per share on sales of $1.69 billion. While the forward yield of 0.21% is tiny, HBM might make up for it with strong capital gains potential.

VAALCO Energy (EGY)

Also falling under the upstream segment of the hydrocarbon industry, VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) is an independent energy company. It engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in Gabon, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, and Canada. Again, geopolitical dynamics should favor EGY. Therefore, it’s one of the intriguing ideas for under-$10 dividend stocks.

Also, on the domestic front, the Biden administration can’t afford to be too aggressive against the hydrocarbon sector. Oil workers vote too, after all. So, with that context in mind, I’m not too worried about Vaalco’s poor fiscal performance in 2023. Yes, the average surprise between Q1 through Q3 came out to 43.4% below breakeven. However, in Q4, the company posted EPS of 37 cents against an expected print of 12 cents per share.

For the current fiscal year, analysts are admittedly hesitant,  believing that sales will land at $430.27 million. That’s 5.4% below last year’s print of $455.07 million. However, the high-side target of $484.3 million seems likely based on the aforementioned dynamics. EGY offers a forward yield of 3.64%.

TransAlta (TAC)

Conducting business under the utilities umbrella, TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) engages in the development, production and sale of electric energy. It operates through the following segments: Hydro, Wind and Solar, Gas, Energy Transition and Energy Marketing. In addition, the company features battery storage facilities. Because energy effectively enjoys permanent relevance, TAC presents an interesting idea for under-$10 dividend stocks.

However, TAC stock has been incredibly volatile so prospective investors must be aware of this dynamic. The idea here is to wager that the worst is over – that’s always tricky. Some good news is that between Q1 through Q3, TransAlta’s average positive earnings surprise came out to 206.33%. That’s mighty impressive. What’s not so encouraging, though, is that in Q4, the company posted a loss of 20 cents against an expected EPS target of 14 cents.

What’s really hurting TAC is that analysts only see revenue reaching $1.99 billion for the current fiscal year, which would be down about 20% from last year’s sales. However, with a trailing-year multiple of 3.75X and a forward yield of 2.74%, TAC could be undervalued.

Centerra Gold (CGAU)

Operating under the basic materials sector, Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) focuses on its namesake commodity. Specifically, it engages in the acquisition, exploration, development and operation of gold and copper properties in North America, Turkey and internationally. As stated earlier, inflation could possibly run hotter than experts predict. If so, CGAU could be a relevant hedging prospect.

Other than that, CGAU makes for a risky idea among under-$10 dividend stocks. It’s also quite enticing. Yes, the earnings performance has been all over the place. In Q1 2023, Centerra posted a loss of 24 cents, worse than the expected loss of 4 cents. However, from Q2 onward, the average quarterly surprise came out to 12.33%. That’s a notable improvement.

For the current fiscal year, analysts project EPS to hit 40 cents on revenue of $1.14 billion. That’s also a solid improvement over last year’s EPS of 5 cents on sales of $1.09 billion. Lastly, Centerra offers a forward yield of 3.58%, making it an attractive idea for under-$10 dividend stocks.

Sandstorm Gold (SAND)

Finally, we’ll end this list of under-$10 dividend stocks with another precious metal play. Sandstorm Gold (NYSE:SAND) operates as a gold royalty company. Per its public profile, it focuses on acquiring royalties and gold and other metals purchase agreements from companies that have advanced-stage operating mines. It offers upfront payments for companies to acquire a stream and receives the right to purchase a percentage of a mine’s production for the life of the mine.

Fundamentally, royalty companies benefit from better pricing predictability. Basically, with the upfront royalty terms, investors understand what they’re signing up for. In contrast, pure-play exploration firms are generally more volatile and unpredictable. That said, Sandstorm’s quarterly performance wavered substantially in 2023. However, it ended the year positively, with a Q4 earnings surprise of 300%.

For fiscal 2024, experts believe that EPS will land at 7 cents on revenue of $168.68 million. That’s disappointing compared to last year’s print of 18 cents on sales of $179.64 million. However, the high-side estimate calls for $188 million on the top line. With a forward yield of 1.15%, SAND could be a surprising speculative idea.

On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.