🔥 Markets Rip Higher as Unemployment Falls — What’s Next?

US stocks rallied on Wednesday after January’s jobs report came in stronger than expected, signaling continued resilience in the labor market and reinforcing the case for the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates on hold.

The Nasdaq rose 0.9%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.7% and the Dow added 280 points, or 0.6%. The economy added 130,000 jobs in January, and unemployment edged down to 4.3%, though significant downward revisions to 2025 payroll data showed annual job growth at just 181,000—the weakest since 2003 outside a recession.

Despite softer recent economic data that had fueled expectations for rate cuts, markets are now increasingly betting the Fed will stay put through June, with most traders still anticipating two rate cuts by year-end.

Top Movers: Under $10 

Classover Holdings Inc (KIDZ) is up 39.56% today to trade at the current level of $0.21. This comes after the company announced a board-approved share repurchase program of up to $2 million of Class B common stock to be funded from existing cash and future cash flows.

SUNation Energy Inc (SUNE) zoomed 30.32% in today’s trade to $1.94 after announcing a strategic financing agreement with Palmetto to provide lease and PPA options via Palmetto’s LightReach platform to support residential solar project growth starting in 2026.

In current trading, Aehr Test Systems (AEHR) stock is at $34.94 following the receipt of its first production order to support a next-generation AI processor used in data centers.

BorgWarner Inc (BWA) rose 18.66% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $64.10 after reporting that it has secured a new electric cross differential (eXD) program with a leading Chinese original equipment manufacturer (OEM).

In the current trading session, Vertiv Holdings Co (VRT) jumped 21.85% to $243.18 over a previous close of $199.62 after reporting strong fourth quarter with organic orders growth of 252% and diluted EPS growth of 200%.

Ex-Dividend Stocks

Zions Bancorporation N.A (ZION) 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 $0.45 per share. It has fixed February 12 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on February 19. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.76 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, ZION has a trailing yield of 2.77% on the current stock price of $63.64.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is First Mid Bancshares Inc (FMBH), having a market capitalization of $1.04B. It will pay a dividend of $0.25 per share, the payment date of which is February 27. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 2.25%.

Shares of Hanover Bancorp Inc (HNVR) will be the talk of the stock market on Thursday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.1 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.40 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that HNVR has a trailing yield of 1.73% on the current share price of $23.06.

Northfield Bancorp Inc (NFBK) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from NFBK will amount to $0.13 per share. February 12 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for February 25. In the previous year, NFBK distributed a total of $0.52 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for NFBK stands at 3.81% based on the current stock price of $13.65.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp (PGC) will be paying out a dividend of $0.05 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of business hours on the record date of February 12. Over the past 12 months, PGC has paid out a total of $0.20 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, PGC boasts an impressive trailing yield of 0.58% on the current share price of $34.2.

Crypto Market Highlights

• The European Union is preparing its 20th sanctions package, aiming to ban all cryptocurrency transactions with Russia to prevent the country from bypassing existing restrictions.

• Danske Bank now allows customers to purchase Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded products from BlackRock and WisdomTree through its eBanking and Mobile Banking platforms.

• Africa recorded the highest median stablecoin-to-fiat conversion spreads in January across 66 monitored currency corridors, according to data from Borderless.xyz.

• Arkham Exchange denied reports of a shutdown and announced plans to relaunch as a decentralized trading platform.

• Google Cloud’s Mandiant has tracked suspected North Korean scammers since 2018 and reports that AI has helped scale up their malicious activities since November 2025.

Most Shorted Stocks

The Kaixin Holdings with the symbol KXIN currently has a short interest of 602.15%. The short interest has changed by 1022373 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 0.3. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $1.29 million. On an average day, 1.46M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $7.49M.

For the stock Digital Currency X Technology Inc (DCX), the current short interest is at 61.22%. This represents a significant short interest change of 194988 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of 123.69%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 0.1. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $0.89 million.

With the symbol NUWE, the stock currently has a short interest of 24.76%. The short interest change is 365909 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of 7,237.12%. It would take approximately 0.0 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $0.79 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 2.10M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $4.18M.

The stock NTLA has a current short interest of 40.38%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of 6.49%, while there was a change of 2761958 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 5.7. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $4.23 million. Trading activity averages at 5.13M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $1.32B.

AI Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) emerges as a high-quality stock in the AI industry, attaining an impressive score of 58. The stock's profitability, growth, and Piotroski Score are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of performance, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Arista Networks Inc (ANET) 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, NICE Ltd ADR (NICE) has the ST Score of 57, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, but weak in growth. Performance, stock sentiment, and forecasts suggest a neutral outlook.

Monolithic Power System Inc (MPWR) stock has the ST Score of 61, 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. However, it shows a neutral outlook in performance, growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Zoom Communications Inc (ZM) currently has the ST Score of 57, which signifies a huge upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. The stock's performance, growth, 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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