Breakout Alert: Top 5 biotech Stocks Mid-Day!

On Thursday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indices recorded declines, reigniting concerns on Wall Street regarding the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy trajectory and the possibility of another rate hike this year.

As of 11:30 AM ET, the Dow was up +31.65 points, or +0.09%, at 34474.84. The Nasdaq Composite lost -168.69 points, or -1.22%, at 13703.78. The S&P 500 declined -20.88 points, or -0.47%, at 4444.6. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 6 showed positive movement, with Utilities leading the way with a 1.95% increase.

Several economic indicators released on Thursday, including jobless claims lower than expected, raised concerns that the robust labor market could lead the Federal Reserve to reconsider its stance on monetary policy tightening. Weekly jobless claims stood at 216,000, below the Dow Jones' expected figure of 230,000, while second-quarter labor costs saw a higher-than-expected increase.

Additionally, investors closely analyzed the most recent corporate earnings reports. C3.ai shares fell by 13% after reporting lower-than-anticipated gross margins for the recent quarter. In a similar vein, ChargePoint Holdings experienced a 21% decline in its stock value after missing revenue estimates.

These developments followed a previous session where major U.S. stock benchmarks experienced losses. The pressure on tech stocks due to higher Treasury yields and growing concerns that the Federal Reserve might use recent strong economic data as a rationale for additional rate hikes contributed to this downturn.

Top Movers: Under $10

Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust Inc. (WHLR) is up 49.71% today to trade at the current level of $6.80. This comes after the company posted Series D redemption forms on its website.

Sigma Additive Solutions Inc. (SASI) zoomed 38.61% in today’s trade to $0.30 as it sets its sights on acquiring NextTrip Holdings, Inc., marking a significant strategic move with the signing of a non-binding letter of intent.

In current trading, Asensus Surgical Inc. (ASXC) stock is at $0.35 following declaration of a collaboration with NVIDIA to accelerate the development of Asensus’s Intelligent Surgical Unit™ and improve its ability to deliver novel clinical intelligence to surgeons.

Artelo Biosciences Inc. (ARTL) rose 18.03% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $2.77 after announcing that it has completed a pre-IND meeting with the FDA regarding the manufacturing, preclinical and clinical development plan for ART26.12.

In the current trading session, Nurix Therapeutics, Inc. (NRIX) increased 12.06% to $9.29 after revealing that it has entered into a multi-year, multi-target strategic collaboration agreement with Seagen Inc. to advance a new class of medicines called Degrader-Antibody Conjugates (DACs) for use in cancer.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

FedEx Corporation (FDX) 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 $1.26 per share. The company has fixed September 11 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on October 02. Last year, the company distributed a total of $5.04 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, FDX has a trailing yield of 1.98% on the current stock price of $254.97.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH), having a market capitalization of $448.64B. It will pay a dividend of $1.88 per share, the payment date of which is September 19. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 1.55%.

Shares of V.F. Corporation (VFC) will be the talk of stock market on Friday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.3 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of $1.20 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that VFC has a trailing yield of 6.25% on the current share price of $19.20.

The Williams Companies Inc. (WMB) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from WMB will amount to $0.45 per share. September 11 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for September 25. In the previous year, WMB distributed a total of $1.79 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for WMB stands at 5.25% based on the current stock price of $34.11.

U.S. Global Investors Inc. (GROW) will be paying out a dividend of $0.01 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of September 11. Over the past 12 months, GROW has paid out a total of $0.09 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, GROW boasts an impressive trailing yield of 2.99% on the current share price of $3.01.

Crypto Market Highlights

Most Shorted Stocks

Cassava Sciences Inc. (SAVA) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 31.11% 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 14.9. This represents a change of 830000 shares, which corresponds to a +7.26% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $253.41 million. The average daily volume stands at 901.52K shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $864.63M.

The Fate Therapeutics Inc. with the symbol FATE currently has a short interest of 30.49%. The short interest has changed by 660000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 13.2. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $69.03 million. On an average day, 2.16M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $214.79M.

For the stock The Lovesac Company (LOVE), the current short interest is at 31.84%. This represents a significant short interest change of -80000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage decrease of -1.84%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 11.6. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $102.2 million.

The stock STEM has a current short interest of 28.55%. The short interest percentage has experienced increase of +3.08% while there was a change of 1210000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 7.5. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $214.46 million. Trading activity averages at 4.90M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $713.70M.

Biotech Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Biotech industry, attaining an impressive score of 60.0. The stock's profitability, performance, and growth are strong. However, its value, and financial strength are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies ARS Pharmaceuticals Inc. (SPRY) as a high-quality Biotech stock today, presenting a Score of 53.0. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, performance, financial strength, and stock sentiment. The value, growth, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Molecular Partners AG (MOLN) has the ST Score of 62.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in valuation, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score but weak in stock sentiment. Profitability, growth, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

PharmaCyte Biotech Inc. (PMCB) stock has the ST Score of 53.0 which implies that the Biotech company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its performance, growth, and financial strength, but its weaknesses are in its stock sentiment. However, it shows neutral outlook in value, profitability, and forecast.

BioNTech SE (BNTX) currently has the ST Score of 60.0, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Biotech stock's strong points are its valuation, profitability, growth, and financial strength, while its weak points are its performance. The stock's stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.