Lunchtime Snapshot: Energy Stock Winners & Budget $10 Picks

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rebounded on Friday, providing a positive close to a challenging week marked by historic volatility. The index plunged 1,100 points on Wednesday and ended its longest losing streak since the 1970s with modest gains, supported by cooler-than-expected inflation data.

At 11:32 AM ET, the Dow was up 577.25 points, or 1.3633%, at $42919.5. The Nasdaq Composite added 249.21 points, or 1.1805%, at $21359.717. The S&P 500 rose 77.8 points, or 1.326%, at $5944.87. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 11 showed positive movement, with Energy leading the way with a 2.27% increase.

Thursday’s 15-point uptick broke the Dow’s 10-day slide, its longest since 1974. The Federal Reserve’s revised outlook drove the midweek drop, indicating just two rate cuts next year instead of the previously projected four, which unsettled markets.

However, investor sentiment remains cautious. A Trump-endorsed House Republican measure to fund the government for three months failed Thursday night, raising the specter of a partial government shutdown starting Friday night without a last-minute deal.

Top Movers: Under $10

Enovix Corporation (ENVX) is up 24.28% today to trade at the current level of $9.98. This comes after the company announced the major milestone of shipping second-generation EX-2M samples to customers manufactured in its Malaysian Fab 2 plant.

Aethlon Medical Inc (AEMD) zoomed 21.53% in today’s trade to $0.53. The company provided a statement of its investigational medical device with respect to the H5N1 avian influenza "Bird Flu."

In current trading, Taoping Inc (TAOP) stock is at $0.47 following the receipt of Nasdaq minimum bid price requirement extension.

Aptose Biosciences Inc (APTO) rose 75.03% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $0.30 after announcing the positive decision by Nasdaq Hearings Panel.

In the current trading session, Personalis Inc (PSNL) jumped 34.60% to $7.08 over a previous close of $5.26 after announcing agreements with long time collaborators Merck and Moderna that accelerate the advancement of the company’s business strategy.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Broadcom Inc (AVGO) is about to trade ex-dividend Monday, meaning that investors who buy the stock after Monday will not be eligible for the next dividend payment. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.59 per share. It has fixed December 23 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on December 31. Last year, the company distributed a total of $16.28 to its shareholders. Based on last year's payments, AVGO has a trailing yield of 7.17%, and the current stock price is $226.92.

Shares of FS Credit Opportunities Corp (FSCO) will be the talk of the stock market on Monday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.06 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.71 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that FSCO has a trailing yield of 10.51% on the current share price of $6.77.

Toro Co (TTC) is also set to go ex-dividend on Monday. The next dividend payment from TTC will amount to $0.38 per share. December 23 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for January 13. In the previous year, TTC distributed a total of $1.44 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for TTC stands at 1.76% based on the current stock price of $81.76.

Bank First Corp (BFC) 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 December 23. Over the past 12 months, BFC has paid out a total of $1.40 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, BFC boasts an impressive trailing yield of 1.39% on the current share price of $100.94.

Crypto Market Highlights

• France's financial markets regulator, Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), has approved BPCE, a French bank, to operate a cryptocurrency business. 

• Cathie Wood, founder of ARK Investment Management, predicts a surge in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) following Donald Trump's election, expecting it to boost innovative strategies.

• Copper Technologies, a cryptocurrency custody firm backed by Barclays, has withdrawn its crypto license application in the United Kingdom.

• Stablecoins on Ethereum layer-2 networks have reached a new all-time high, reflecting increasing demand for cryptocurrencies.

• Liquidators of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia have begun distributing millions to users impacted by a hack nearly six years ago.

Most Shorted Stocks

Solaredge Technologies Inc (SEDG) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 33.99% 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 4.1. This represents a change of 300000 shares, which corresponds to a +1.55% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $288.21 million. The average daily volume stands at 5.01M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $848.01M.

The Sunshine Biopharma Inc with the symbol SBFM currently has a short interest of 27.78%. The short interest has changed by 321500 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 0.8. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $1.54 million. On an average day, 680.39K shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $5.57M.

For the stock AnaptysBio Inc (ANAB), the current short interest is at 27.33%. This represents a significant short interest change of 390000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +5.81%%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 15.9. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $103.16 million.

With the symbol AVXL, the stock currently has a short interest of 23.22%. The short interest change is 880000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of +4.68%%. It would take approximately 17.3 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $60.85 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1.18M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $726.70M.

The stock SOUN has a current short interest of 25.22%. The short interest percentage has experienced a decrease of -5.45%% while there was a change of -4710000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 2.1. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $383.95 million. Trading activity averages at 50.69M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $7.21B.

Energy Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Tenaris S.A. ADR (TS) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Energy industry, attaining an impressive score of 68. The stock's profitability, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Scorpio Tankers Inc (STNG) as a high-quality Energy stock today, presenting a Score of 63. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak performance. The growth, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Kinetik Holdings Inc (KNTK) has the ST Score of 62, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in performance, growth, and Piotroski Score. Profitability, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

TechnipFMC plc (FTI) stock has the ST Score of 60 which implies that the Energy company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score, but its weaknesses are in its financial strength. However, it shows a neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Dorian LPG Ltd (LPG) currently has the ST Score of 60, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Energy stock's strong points are its profitability, growth, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its performance. The stock's 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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