💥 AI Hype vs Reality: Big Tech Faces Make-or-Break Moment

US stocks were mixed on Wednesday as investors braced for a wave of Big Tech earnings and what could be Jerome Powell’s final interest rate announcement as Federal Reserve chair. 

The S&P 500 hovered near the flatline, the Nasdaq rose 0.2%, and the Dow Jones fell about 0.4% after hitting record highs a day earlier. Seagate led gains, surging 17% on a strong outlook and lifting optimism around AI-driven growth despite recent concerns. 

Focus now shifts to earnings from Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft, with investors watching for signs that heavy AI spending is translating into real revenue growth. Meanwhile, the Fed is expected to hold rates steady, though the decision carries added weight as Powell’s term nears its end. 

Oil prices also climbed more than 3% on reports of a potential prolonged US naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, tightening global energy supply.

Top Movers: Under $10 

X.T.L. Biopharmaceuticals Ltd ADR (XTLB) is up 64.35% today to trade at the current level of $3.78. This comes after the company announced that it has entered into a definitive share purchase agreement to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding share capital of Psyga Bio Ltd.

Sagtec Global Ltd (SAGT) zoomed 27.65% in today’s trade to $2.17. The company achieved record revenue of US$19.1 million in fiscal year 2025, marking 49% year-over-year growth.

In current trading, Hyperfine Inc (HYPR) stock is at $1.55 after announcing that AIIMS New Delhi has initiated clinical use of the Swoop® portable MRI system.

Clarivate Plc (CLVT) rose 14.37% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $2.87 after reporting first-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, with both earnings and revenue coming in ahead of forecasts as its Value Creation Plan begins to show results.

In the current trading session, Sky Quarry Inc (SKYQ) jumped 13.03% to $6.67 over a previous close of $5.9 after announcing that it is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to engage partners seeking production opportunities to accelerate the development and commercialization of its ~180-million-barrel oil sands resource at its fully permitted PR Spring facility in Utah.

Ex-Dividend Stocks

Columbus Mckinnon Corp (CMCO) is about to trade ex-dividend Friday, meaning that investors who buy the stock after Friday will not be eligible for the next dividend payment. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.07 per share. It has fixed May 01 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on May 11. Last year, the company distributed $0.28 per share to its shareholders. Based on last year's payments, CMCO has a trailing yield of 1.80% at the current stock price of $15.58.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends Friday is Costco Wholesale Corp (COST), having a market capitalization of $440.99B. It will pay a dividend of $1.47 per share, the payment date of which is May 15. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 0.52%.

Shares of Lifetime Brands Inc (LCUT) will be the talk of the stock market on Friday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.04 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.17 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that LCUT has a trailing yield of 2.32% on the current share price of $7.23.

Old Second Bancorporation Inc (OSBC) is also set to go ex-dividend Friday. The next dividend payment from OSBC will amount to $0.07 per share. May 01 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for May 11. In the previous year, OSBC distributed a total of $0.26 to its valued shareholders. Considering last year's cumulative dividend payments, the trailing yield for OSBC is 1.24% based on the current stock price of $20.91.

Park-Ohio Holdings Corp (PKOH) will be paying out a dividend of $0.12 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of business hours on the record date of May 01. Over the past 12 months, PKOH has paid out a total of $0.50 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, PKOH boasts an impressive trailing yield of 1.69% on the current share price of $29.52.

Crypto Market Highlights

• A Manhattan federal judge, Lewis Kaplan, denied Sam Bankman-Fried’s request for a new trial, ruling that his claims of new evidence and witnesses were baseless.

• RedStone has launched a new DeFi settlement layer to enable tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) to be used as collateral in lending protocols.

• Canaan secured a new order from Tether for custom Bitcoin mining hardware, expanding their partnership to supply high-density modules for immersion-cooled systems in South America.

• Paxos Labs integrated its Amplify platform with Toku, allowing employees to earn yield on stablecoin salaries instantly without moving funds or losing custody.

• DeFi United released a technical plan to restore rsETH backing after the April 18 exploit of Kelp’s bridge, which resulted in 116,500 rsETH being issued without a corresponding burn.

Most Shorted Stocks

Sally Beauty Holdings Inc (SBH) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 18.71% 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 14.0. This represents a change of 207629 shares, which corresponds to a 1.18% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $257.53 million. The average daily volume stands at 1.55M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $1.40B.

The Jetblue Airways Corp with the symbol JBLU currently has a short interest of 18.69%. The short interest has changed by 194504 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 2.6. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $339.28 million. On an average day, 25.77M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $1.86B.

For the stock Celcuity (CELC), the current short interest is at 21.01%. This represents a significant short interest change of 3,096 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of 0.04%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 12.8. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $1.09 billion.

With the symbol TGTX, the stock currently has a short interest of 20.13%. The short interest change is -216,903 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -0.75%. It would take approximately 19.1 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $993.94 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1,729,034 shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $5.52B.

The stock OWL has a current short interest of 10.70%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of 1.85%, while there was a change of 2197294 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 3.7. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $254.52 million. Trading activity averages at 33.88M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $13.91B.

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 56. The stock's profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of performance, growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies UiPath Inc (PATH) as a high-quality AI stock today, presenting a Score of 56. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. The performance, growth, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Airship AI Holdings Inc (AISP) has the ST Score of 55, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast. Profitability, performance, growth, and Piotroski score suggest a neutral outlook.

NICE Ltd ADR (NICE) stock has the ST Score of 55, which implies that the AI company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, but its weaknesses are in its growth. However, it shows a neutral outlook in performance, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Medtronic Plc (MDT) currently has the ST Score of 54, which signifies a huge upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its growth. The stock's financial strength, 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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