5 AI Stocks You Can Still Afford — And Why They Matter

U.S. stocks rose modestly on Wednesday as investors digested corporate earnings and fresh trade policy moves from Washington. The S&P 500 gained 0.2%, the Nasdaq climbed 0.3%, while the Dow stayed near flat. Market sentiment remained cautious due to growing geopolitical tensions and potential policy shifts from the White House.

On the earnings front:

• Disney beat expectations, driven by strong performance in theme parks and streaming, and announced a deal to acquire NFL media assets.

• AMD posted mixed results, leading to a dip in its stock and slight pressure on Nvidia.

• McDonald's rebounded from a U.S. sales slump.

• Uber surged after topping revenue forecasts and unveiling a $20 billion stock buyback.

In trade developments, President Trump imposed an additional 25% tariff on India over its continued purchases of Russian oil, doubling existing duties. The Swiss president visited Washington to avoid a threatened 39% tariff on Swiss imports.

Investors now await post-market earnings from Airbnb, DoorDash, and Lyft.

Top Movers: Under $10 

Ainos Inc (AIMD) is up 49.36% today to trade at the current level of $3.48. This comes after the company announced that it has secured a three-year subscription-based order valued at $2.1 million with ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd.

Liveperson Inc (LPSN) zoomed 38.68% in today’s trade to $1.23 after announcing a significant expansion of its partnership with Google Cloud to integrate its advanced AI capabilities directly into the LivePerson Connected Experience Platform.

In current trading, eHealth Inc (EHTH) stock is at $4.22 after announcing second quarter 2025 results.

Professional Diversity Network Inc (IPDN) rose 19.34% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $2.16 after announcing the appointment of Mr. Xun Wu as its new Chief Executive Officer.

In the current trading session, Gilat Satellite Networks (GILT) jumped 14.41% to $8.41 over a previous close of $7.35. The company reported second-quarter 2025 results.

Ex-Dividend Stocks

Bank of Marin Bancorp (BMRC) is about to trade ex-dividend tomorrow, meaning that investors who buy the stock after tomorrow will not be eligible for the next dividend payment. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.25 per share. It has fixed August 07 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on August 14. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.00 to its shareholders. Based on last year's worth of payments, BMRC has a trailing yield of 4.49% on the current stock price of $22.27.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp (PGC), having a market capitalization of $444.11M. It will pay a dividend of $0.05 per share, the payment date of which is August 21. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 0.80%.

Shares of Veritex Holdings Inc (VBTX) will be the talk of the stock market on Thursday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.22 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.82 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that VBTX has a trailing yield of 2.63% on the current share price of $31.23.

Franklin Electric Co., Inc (FELE) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from FELE will amount to $0.27 per share. August 07 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for August 21. In the previous year, FELE distributed a total of $1.03 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for FELE stands at 1.09% based on the current stock price of $94.16.

Heritage Commerce Corp (HTBK) will be paying out a dividend of $0.13 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of August 07. Over the past 12 months, HTBK has paid out a total of $0.52 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, HTBK boasts an impressive trailing yield of 5.52% on the current share price of $9.42.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Coinbase's Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, met with Karnataka's IT Minister Priyank Kharge to explore expanding Coinbase's role in India’s digital infrastructure.

• Japan's SBI Holdings plans to launch the country's first dual-asset crypto ETF, providing exposure to both Bitcoin and XRP.

• Satsuma Technology raised £163.66 million ($217.6 million) in its second convertible loan note round, with nearly $125 million settled in Bitcoin to support its Bitcoin treasury strategy.

• UK-based The Smarter Web Company raised $21 million through a Bitcoin-denominated bond offering, a rare move in the British capital markets.

• The UK financial regulator lifted the ban on crypto exchange-traded notes (cETNs) for retail investors, aligning the UK closer with global digital asset markets.

Most Shorted Stocks

Lemonade Inc (LMND) was one of the most shorted stocks as of the latest short interest figures, with 30.30% short interest. The days to cover ratio, a measure of how long it would take for all the short positions to be covered based on average trading volume, is 7.8. This represents a change of 880000 shares, which corresponds to a +5.25% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $889.56 million. The average daily volume stands at 2.56M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $3.69B.

The Groupon Inc with the symbol GRPN currently has a short interest of 45.17%. The short interest has changed by 780000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 6.1. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $294.86 million. On an average day, 1.49M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $1.23B.

For the stock Vuzix Corporation (VUZI), the current short interest is at 28.95%. This represents a significant short interest change of 18211800 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +100,064.84%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 10.0. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $38.65 million.

With the symbol BEAM, the stock currently has a short interest of 23.53%. The short interest change is -420000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of 1.74%. It would take approximately 11.3 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $329.96 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 2.17M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $1.82B.

The stock MARA has a current short interest of 22.73%. The short interest percentage has experienced a decrease of 5.93% while there was a change of -5310000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 1.7. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $370.04 million. Trading activity averages at 47.90M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $5.79B.

AI Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Arista Networks Inc (ANET) emerges as a high-quality stock in the AI industry, attaining an impressive score of 62. The stock's profitability, performance, and financial strength are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of growth, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR) as a high-quality AI stock today, presenting a Score of 60. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. The growth, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) has the ST Score of 58, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score. Growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Digital Realty Trust Inc (DLR) stock has the ST Score of 57 which implies that the AI company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score. However, it shows neutral outlook in growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Zoom Communications Inc (ZM) currently has the ST Score of 58, which signifies a huge upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its performance. The stock's growth, stock sentiment, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.

That's it for today. Thanks for reading. Good luck out there!

Best Regards,

Stocks Telegraph Team

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