Dear Readers,

The Nasdaq Composite faced renewed pressure as Thursday's losses positioned it for a fifth consecutive day of decline. Wall Street witnessed a challenging trading session, marked by the Dow shedding nearly 300 points and the Nasdaq Composite experiencing a decline exceeding 1%.

The recent market performance sharply contrasts with the conclusion of 2023. The S&P 500 closed the previous year with a robust gain of over 24%, achieving its most substantial weekly winning streak since 2004.

In a notable development on Thursday, the latest release of the ADP report indicated stronger-than-expected job growth in December. Companies added 164,000 jobs for the month, surpassing the Dow Jones estimate of 130,000. Additionally, total jobless claims reflected a deceleration in layoffs for the week ending December 30, providing further evidence of resilience within the labor market.

As of 11:41 AM ET, the Dow was up 255.8477 points, or 0.6835%, at $37686.04. The Nasdaq Composite added 30.4121 points, or 0.1858%, at $16398.902. The S&P 500 rose 17.2197 points, or 0.366%, at $4722.03. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 10 showed positive movement, with Health Care leading the way with a 0.82% increase.

Top Movers: Under $10

Omega Therapeutics Inc (OMGA) is up 109.93% today to trade at the current level of $5.73. This comes after Novo Nordisk, Omega Therapeutics, Inc. and Cellarity Inc. announced that Novo Nordisk has entered into separate research collaborations with each company.

Avenue Therapeutics Inc (ATXI) zoomed 54.32% in today’s trade to $0.27 after declaring that it has reached final agreement with the U.S. FDA for the phase 3 safety study for IV Tramadol.

In current trading, Mobix Labs Inc (MOBX) stock is at $4.08 following the annoucement from the company that it has been awarded a 15-month contract to supply electromagnetic interference (EMI) Filtered Connectors as part of the U.S. Army’s M-1 Abrams Tank program.

Adicet Bio Inc (ACET) rose 23.86% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $2.18. The company provided corporate updates and highlighted upcoming priorities for its pipeline programs in 2024.

In the current trading session, ATAI Life Sciences N.V. (ATAI) jumped 14.33% to $1.72 over a previous close of $1.50 after announcing a strategic investment in Beckley Psytech Limited.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Oge Energy Corp. (OGE) 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 $0.42 per share. It has fixed January 08 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on January 26. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.68 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, OGE has a trailing yield of 4.68% on the current stock price of $35.95.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is U.S. Global Investors, Inc. (GROW), having a market capitalization of $41.09M. It will pay a dividend of $0.01 per share, the payment date of which is January 22. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 3.19%.

Shares of Amcon Distributing Company (DIT) will be the talk of stock market on Friday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.28 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.72 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that DIT has a trailing yield of 0.38% on the current share price of $188.62.

Owens Corning (OC) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from OC will amount to $0.6 per share. January 08 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for January 19. In the previous year, OC distributed a total of $2.08 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for OC stands at 1.41% based on the current stock price of $147.26.

Universal Corp. (UVV) will be paying out a dividend of $0.8 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of January 08. Over the past 12 months, UVV has paid out a total of $3.18 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, UVV boasts an impressive trailing yield of 4.87% on the current share price of $65.33.

Crypto Market Highlights

Most Shorted Stocks

Blink Charging Co (BLNK) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 29.06% 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 3.7. This represents a change of 1270000 shares, which corresponds to a +6.93% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $57.2 million. The average daily volume stands at 6.04M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $196.84M.

The Cassava Sciences Inc with the symbol SAVA currently has a short interest of 32.24%. The short interest has changed by -960000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 8.6. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $295.01 million. On an average day, 1.53M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $974.97M.

For the stock ProKidney Corp (PROK), the current short interest is at 31.99%. This represents a significant short interest change of -740000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage decrease of -5.26%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 13.5. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $20.41 million.

With the symbol ALLO, the stock currently has a short interest of 31.66%. The short interest change is 1690000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of +5.30%. It would take approximately 14.3 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $45.22 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 2.46M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $569.78M.

Biotech Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Incyte Corp. (INCY) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Biotech industry, attaining an impressive score of 65.0. The stock's profitability, performance, growth, and stock sentiment are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of value, financial strength, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Invivyd Inc (IVVD) as a high-quality Biotech stock today, presenting a Score of 62.0. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of performance, growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast. However, it has weak Piotroski Score. The value, and profitability are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Innoviva Inc (INVA) has the ST Score of 64.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, performance, and stock sentiment but weak in financial strength. Value, growth, piotroski score, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Cullinan Oncology Inc (CGEM) stock has the ST Score of 62.0 which implies that the Biotech company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its performance, financial strength, and stock sentiment, but its weaknesses are in its growth. However, it shows neutral outlook in value, profitability, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Equillium Inc (EQ) currently has the ST Score of 62.0, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Biotech stock's strong points are its valuation, profitability, performance, and stock sentiment. The stock's growth, financial strength, Piotroski Score, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.