Dear Readers,

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped for the second consecutive day, marking a lackluster beginning to the quarter on Wall Street. This decline came amidst rising bond yields and diminishing expectations of an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in June.

As of 12:05 PM ET, the Dow was down -480.87 points, or -1.2153%, at $39085.99. The Nasdaq Composite lost -255.3184 points, or -1.3957%, at $18037.88. The S&P 500 declined -53.2603 points, or -1.0157%, at $5190.51. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 9 showed negative movement, with Health leading the way with a 1.96% decrease.

Stocks face a challenging start to the second quarter, with inflation data lingering from last week and robust economic indicators on Monday driving up yields and reducing the likelihood of a June rate cut by the Fed. The 10-year Treasury yield surged to its highest level since November 28, while oil prices reached a five-month peak on Tuesday, exacerbating inflation concerns.

The probability of a June rate cut, as indicated by fed futures trading, has dropped to approximately 58.8%, down from about 70% a week earlier. The crucial question now is whether the positive momentum from the beginning of 2024 can be sustained if the Fed maintains its current stance on rates.

Top Movers: Under $10

VivoPower International PLC (VVPR) is up 262.76% today to trade at the current level of $5.26. This comes after the company announced binding heads of agreement to merge Tembo into NASDAQ-listed CCTS at an indicative US$838m Equity Value.

Ashford Inc (AINC) zoomed 104.50% in today’s trade to $4.54. The company’s board of directors approved the plan to terminate the registration of its common stock.

In current trading, Aditxt Inc (ADTX) stock is at $4.00 following news that it has entered into a definitive arrangement agreement to acquire Appili Therapeutics Inc.

KULR Technology Group Inc (KULR) rose 36.15% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $0.56. The company unveiled a commitment exceeding $1 million with H55 Inc. (“H55”), a pioneer and global leader in electric propulsion.

In the current trading session, GSI Technology Inc (GSIT) jumped 29.68% to $4.43 over a previous close of $3.42 after announcing production release of Two Gemini-I® APU Servers.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

ABM Industries Inc. (ABM) 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 $0.23 per share. It has fixed April 04 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on May 06. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.89 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, ABM has a trailing yield of 1.99% on the current stock price of $44.54.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is Campbell Soup Co. (CPB), having a market capitalization of $13.24B. It will pay a dividend of $0.37 per share, the payment date of which is April 29. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 3.33%.

Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) will be the talk of stock market on Wednesday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.4 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $1.56 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that CSCO has a trailing yield of 3.16% on the current share price of $49.35.

Tomorrow, Progressive Corp. (PGR) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from PGR will amount to $0.1 per share. April 04 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for April 12. In the previous year, PGR distributed a total of $1.15 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for PGR stands at 0.55% based on the current stock price of $209.76.

Two Harbors Investment Corp (TWO) will be paying out a dividend of $0.45 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of April 04. Over the past 12 months, TWO has paid out a total of $1.95 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, TWO boasts an impressive trailing yield of 14.94% on the current share price of $13.05.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Deribit relocates to Dubai after securing new local regulatory approval

• Largest recipient of Ethena Labs airdrop receives nearly $2 million worth of ENA tokens

• Nexo and 35+ crypto organizations advocate for official Bitcoin emoji

• BNB Chain targets memecoin developers with $1 million reward allocation

• Crypto.com to launch cryptocurrency trading app for South Korean retail investors on April 29

Most Shorted Stocks

Maison Solutions Inc. (MSS) was one of the most shorted stocks as of the latest short interest figures, with 36.05% 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 0.8. This represents a change of -10900 shares, which corresponds to a -4.44% decrease in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $0.3 million. The average daily volume stands at 239.19K shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $17.75M.

The Maxeon Solar Technologies Ltd with the symbol MAXN currently has a short interest of 35.41%. The short interest has changed by 430000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 4.7. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $32.68 million. On an average day, 2.23M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $156.49M.

For the stock Irobot Corp (IRBT), the current short interest is at 34.92%. This represents a significant short interest change of 350000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +3.85%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 3.4. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $76.65 million.

The stock MPW has a current short interest of 33.51%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +0.34% while there was a change of 670000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 8.5. Trading activity averages at 24.25M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $2.61B.

EV Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Li Auto Inc ADR (LI) emerges as a high-quality stock in the EV industry, attaining an impressive score of 63.0. The stock's profitability, growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and Piotroski Score are strong. However, its forecast are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of value, and performance.

Our ST Score also classifies Honda Motor ADR (HMC) as a high-quality EV stock today, presenting a Score of 58.0. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of valuation, profitability, and stock sentiment. However, it has weak growth. The performance, financial strength, Piotroski Score, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Aehr Test Systems (AEHR) has the ST Score of 56.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, and financial strength but weak in forecast. Value, performance, growth, stock sentiment, and piotroski score suggest a neutral outlook.

Toyota Motor Corporation ADR (TM) stock has the ST Score of 55.0 which implies that the EV company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, stock sentiment, and Piotroski Score, but its weaknesses are in its growth, and financial strength. However, it shows a neutral outlook in value, performance, and forecast.

Cirrus Logic, Inc. (CRUS) currently has the ST Score of 56.0, which signifies a huge upward potential. The EV stock's strong points are its profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its growth. The stock's value, performance, stock sentiment, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.

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