The following are today's upgrades for Validea's Small-Cap Growth Investor model based on the published strategy of Motley Fool. This strategy looks for small cap growth stocks with solid fundamentals and strong price performance. KINETIK HOLDINGS INC (KNTK) is a mid-cap value stock in the Natural Gas Utilities industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Motley Fool changed from 65% to 72% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest. Company Description: Kinetik Holdings Inc., formerly Altus Midstream Company, is an integrated midstream energy company in the Permian Basin. The Company provides gathering, transportation, compression, processing, and treating services for companies that produce natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and water. The Company operates approximately 2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/day) of constructed cryogenic natural gas processing capacity strategically located near the Waha Hub in West Texas. The Company also has interests in four built, long-term contracted pipelines transporting natural gas, NGLs, and crude oil from the Permian Basin to the Gulf Coast. It has long-term dedications of approximately 850,000 acres for gas, crude oil, and water midstream services from 30 active producers in the Delaware Basin. The Company's Midstream Logistics business also includes its crude oil gathering, stabilization, and storage services throughout the Texas Delaware Basin. The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria. Detailed Analysis of KINETIK HOLDINGS INC COLUMBIA FINANCIAL INC (CLBK) is a mid-cap growth stock in the Regional Banks industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Motley Fool changed from 87% to 93% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest. Company Description: Columbia Financial, Inc. is the holding company of Columbia Bank and Freehold Bank, each of which is a federally chartered stock savings bank. The Company offers traditional financial services to businesses and consumers in its market areas. Through Columbia Bank and Freehold Bank, the Company serves the financial needs of its depositors and the local community as community-minded, customer service-focused institutions. It offers traditional financial services to businesses and consumers in its market areas. The Company attracts deposits from the general public and use those funds to originate a variety of loans, including multifamily and commercial real estate loans, commercial business loans, one-to four-family real estate loans, construction loans, home equity loans and advances, and other consumer loans. The Company offers title insurance through its subsidiary, First Jersey Title Services, Inc. Wealth management services are offered through a third-party relationship. The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria. Detailed Analysis of COLUMBIA FINANCIAL INC REX AMERICAN RESOURCES CORP (REX) is a small-cap value stock in the Chemical Manufacturing industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Motley Fool changed from 59% to 72% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest. Company Description: REX American Resources Corporation is a holding company. The Company operates through the ethanol and by-products segment. Its ethanol operations are focused on corn, ethanol, distillers grains, non-food grade corn oil and natural gas. It has interests in over six ethanol production facilities, which in aggregate shipped approximately 699 million gallons of ethanol. The Company has ownership of the gallons shipped by the ethanol production facilities, which has ownership interests in approximately 282 million gallons. The Company operates through its subsidiaries, including One Earth Energy, LLC (One Earth), NuGen Energy, LLC (NuGen) and Big River Resources, LLC (Big River). Its ethanol industry consists of approximately 208 plants in over 25 states with an annual capacity of approximately 17.7 billion gallons of ethanol production in the United States. The Company has approximately one billion gallons that are exported from the United States. The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria. Detailed Analysis of REX AMERICAN RESOURCES CORP About Motley Fool: Brothers David and Tom Gardner often wear funny hats in public appearances, but they're hardly fools -- at least not the kind whose advice you should readily dismiss. The Gardners are the founders of the popular Motley Fool web site, which offers frank and often irreverent commentary on investing, the stock market, and personal finance. The Gardners' "Fool" really is a multi-media endeavor, offering not only its web content but also several books written by the brothers, a weekly syndicated newspaper column, and subscription newsletter services. About Validea: Validea is aninvestment researchservice that follows the published strategies of investment legends. Validea offers both stock analysis and model portfolios based on gurus who have outperformed the market over the long-term, including Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Peter Lynch and Martin Zweig. For more information about Validea, click here The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.