Stocks surged on Monday as investors eagerly awaited a wave of corporate earnings reports and largely brushed off an increase in Treasury yields.

Earnings season is set to pick up steam this week, with approximately 11% of the S&P 500 companies scheduled to unveil their financial results. Among the noteworthy companies on the agenda are Johnson & Johnson, Bank of America, Netflix, and Tesla.

These upcoming reports come on the heels of a strong start to the earnings season. Brokerage firm Charles Schwab, for instance, saw its shares rise over 4% on Monday after surpassing Wall Street's expectations for third-quarter earnings per share.

Last week, financial giants JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and UnitedHealth also experienced gains following the release of their quarterly results.

In contrast to these developments, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield climbed nearly 7 basis points to reach 4.698% on Monday, while oil prices slipped as investors digested the latest updates on the ongoing conflict.

The performance of stocks in the previous week was mixed, with the S&P 500 advancing by 0.5% for its second consecutive positive week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite experiencing a slight dip of about 0.2%.

As of 11:59 AM ET, the Dow was up 348.1211 points, or 1.0339%, at $34018.41. The Nasdaq Composite added 152.9072 points, or 1.0197%, at $15148.022. The S&P 500 rose 44.52 points, or 1.0287%, at $4372.3. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 8 showed positive movement, with Information Technology leading the way with a 0.94% increase.

Top Movers: Under $10

Mereo Biopharma Group Plc ADR (MREO) is up 25.58% today to trade at the current level of $1.62. The company recently declared that it will hold its 2023 annual meeting of shareholders at its principal executive offices at Room 2302, 23rd Floor, FWD Financial Center, 308 Des Voeux Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong, on November 10, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. local China time.

Dare Bioscience Inc (DARE) zoomed 21.74% in today’s trade to $0.56 following the news of the first shipment of XACIATOTM (clindamycin phosphate) vaginal gel, 2%, marking its debut in the United States and prompting a substantial $1.8 million milestone payment from Organon under their global license agreement.

In current trading, Alignment Healthcare Inc (ALHC) stock is at $7.96 in response to the announcement that its California Medicare Advantage (MA) HMO, covering approximately 89% of its MA membership, has secured a consistent 4-out-of-5-star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for 2024.

Indie Semiconductor Inc (INDI) rose 18.07% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $5.75 after announcing that in connection with the Company’s warrant exchange offer and consent solicitation, preliminary estimated revenue for the three months ended September 30, 2023 is expected to be above $60 million and slightly better than the Company’s guidance and consensus estimates.

In the current trading session, Consolidated Communications Holdings Inc (CNSL) jumped 15.44% to $4.07 over a previous close of $3.53 after announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement (the “Agreement”) to be acquired by affiliates of Searchlight Capital Partners, L.P. and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation in an all-cash transaction with an enterprise value of approximately $3.1 billion, including the assumption of debt.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

AZZ Inc (AZZ) 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 $0.17 per share. The company has fixed October 18 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on November 01. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.68 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, AZZ has a trailing yield of 1.42% on the current stock price of $47.94.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is RPM International, Inc. (RPM), having a market capitalization of $12.62B. It will pay a dividend of $0.46 per share, the payment date of which is October 31. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 1.59%.

Shares of H.B. Fuller Company (FUL) will be the talk of stock market on Tuesday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.2 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of $0.83 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that FUL has a trailing yield of 1.16% on the current share price of $71.29.

Horizon Technology Finance Corporation (HRZN) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from HRZN will amount to $0.11 per share. October 18 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for November 15. In the previous year, HRZN distributed a total of $1.32 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for HRZN stands at 10.59% based on the current stock price of $12.47.

First United Corporation (FUNC) will be paying out a dividend of $0.2 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of October 18. Over the past 12 months, FUNC has paid out a total of $0.80 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, FUNC boasts an impressive trailing yield of 4.73% on the current share price of $16.90.

Crypto Market Highlights

Most Shorted Stocks

Childrens Place Inc (PLCE) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 25.84% 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 5.8. This represents a change of 70000 shares, which corresponds to a +2.40% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $75.44 million. The average daily volume stands at 502.99K shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $314.87M.

The Twist Bioscience Corp with the symbol TWST currently has a short interest of 23.85%. The short interest has changed by -290000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 13.2. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $240.81 million. On an average day, 1.01M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $1.01B.

For the stock Ebix Inc. (EBIX), the current short interest is at 30.39%. This represents a significant short interest change of 1540000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +26.42%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 7.4. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $47.91 million.

The stock BCRX has a current short interest of 22.37%. The short interest percentage has experienced decrease of -0.26% while there was a change of -110000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 17.0. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $139.84 million. Trading activity averages at 2.51M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $1.10B.

Upcoming IPOs

Prospect Energy Holdings Corp (AMGS) is scheduled to go public on October 18, 2023, on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Their symbol is AMGS, and they are offering 7,500,000 shares at a price of $10.00 per share. This translates to a deal size of $75.00 million, and the company will have a market capitalization of $94.50 million. Investors are likely to keep a close eye on this energy-focused IPO.

On the same day, Globavend Holdings Limited (GVH) is set to debut on NASDAQ with the symbol GVH. They have a price range of $4.00 to $5.00 per share, offering 1,875,000 shares. This IPO carries a deal size of $8.44 million and a market capitalization of $67.50 million. With reported revenue of $19.62 million, this IPO offers an attractive opportunity for potential investors interested in holdings companies.

Pineapple Financial Inc. (PAPL) is another NASDAQ debut on October 18, 2023, with the symbol PAPL. Their price range is set at $4.00 to $6.00 per share, and they plan to offer 875,000 shares. The deal size for Pineapple Financial is $4.38 million, leading to a market capitalization of $35.91 million. The company's reported revenue stands at $3.60 million, making this IPO a potential addition for those keen on financial services.

On October 20, 2023, WeBuy Global Ltd (WBUY) is poised to enter the NASDAQ stock exchange with the symbol WBUY. They are offering 3,500,000 shares at a price range of $4.00 to $4.50 per share. This results in a deal size of $14.88 million and a market capitalization of $218.92 million. WeBuy Global Ltd reports a substantial revenue of $44.56 million.