📈 Microcap Mania: Big Gains Hiding Under $5

U.S. stocks declined Monday as renewed trade uncertainty rattled investors. The Dow fell over 600 points (1.3%), while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slipped 0.6%, after President Trump announced a 15% baseline tariff on imports despite the Supreme Court overturning several existing tariffs.

The EU pushed back on the move, adding to global trade tensions. Oil prices rose on geopolitical concerns, a potential March rate cut hinges on upcoming jobs data, and Nvidia’s earnings this week are in focus amid ongoing AI-driven market volatility.

Top Movers: Under $10 

Tian Ruixiang Holdings Ltd (TIRX) is up 145.23% today to trade at the current level of $0.10. This comes after the company confirmed that it is in advanced and final-stage discussions for a transformative strategic business combination with a pre-eminent insurance technology leader operating across the Asia-Pacific region.

J-Star Holding Co Ltd (YMAT) zoomed 76.82% in today’s trade to $0.65 after announcing that it has entered into an exclusive global distribution agreement with Patriot Green Energy Technology.

In current trading, Allurion Technologies Inc (ALUR) stock is at $1.59 after announcing that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the premarket approval (PMA) application for the Allurion Gastric Balloon System, featuring the Allurion Smart Capsule.

Reliance Global Group Inc (EZRA) rose 17.75% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $0.21 after announcing the completion of its strategic acquisition of Enquantum Ltd.

In the current trading session, Genprex Inc (GNPX) jumped 23.88% to $2.20 over a previous close of $1.78 after announcing that the Japanese Patent Office has issued a favorable Appeal Decision to grant a patent claiming the use of Reqorsa® Gene Therapy in combination with PD-L1 antibodies to treat cancer.

Ex-Dividend Stocks

Monro Inc (MNRO) 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 $0.28 per share. It has fixed February 24 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on March 10. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.12 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, MNRO has a trailing yield of 4.98% on the current stock price of $22.49.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is ePlus Inc (PLUS), having a market capitalization of $2.07B. It will pay a dividend of $0.25 per share, the payment date of which is March 18. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 0.64%.

Shares of Skyworks Solutions, Inc (SWKS) will be the talk of the stock market on Tuesday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.71 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $2.82 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that SWKS has a trailing yield of 4.76% on the current share price of $59.28.

Tractor Supply Co (TSCO) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from TSCO will amount to $0.24 per share. February 24 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for March 10. In the previous year, TSCO distributed a total of $0.92 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for TSCO stands at 1.75% based on the current stock price of $52.72.

United Fire Group Inc (UFCS) will be paying out a dividend of $0.2 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of business hours on the record date of February 24. Over the past 12 months, UFCS has paid out a total of $0.64 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, UFCS boasts an impressive trailing yield of 1.67% on the current share price of $38.26.

Crypto Market Highlights

• US mortgage lender Rate launched a nationwide program enabling qualified borrowers to use verified cryptocurrency holdings to meet underwriting requirements without selling their assets, advancing the integration of digital assets into traditional home financing.

• A cryptocurrency trader alleged that a former Revolut employee attempted to extort him by threatening to release his personal information unless paid a ransom; Revolut said it has reported the matter to law enforcement.

• Curve Finance founder Michael Egorov said decentralized finance (DeFi) can no longer depend on inflationary token incentives to drive sustainable growth.

• Standard Chartered analysts reaffirmed their projection that the stablecoin market will reach $2 trillion by late 2028, even as they trimmed near-term expectations for US Treasury bill demand.

• Austria’s financial regulator barred KuCoin EU Exchange from conducting new business, citing violations related to Anti-Money Laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CTF), and financial sanctions compliance.

Most Shorted Stocks

EZCorp, Inc (EZPW) was one of the most shorted stocks as of the latest short interest figures, with 22.67% 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 18.9. This represents a change of -175356 shares, which corresponds to a -1.28% decrease in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $340.05 million. The average daily volume stands at 1.11M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $1.55B.

The Verastem Inc with the symbol VSTM currently has a short interest of 25.18%. The short interest has changed by -656529 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 10.0. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $94.97 million. On an average day, 1.94M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $434.60M.

For the stock Sleep Number Corp (SNBR), the current short interest is at 23.41%. This represents a significant short interest change of -671080 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage decrease of -11.97%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 7.9. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $44.03 million.

With the symbol SPRY, the stock currently has a short interest of 32.55%. The short interest change is 1174468 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of 5.81%. It would take approximately 15.2 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $46.1 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1.65M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $923.25M.

The stock IMCR has a current short interest of 24.14%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of 9.14%, while there was a change of 915709 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 17.5. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $700.18 million. Trading activity averages at 392.64K shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $1.65B.

Upcoming IPOs

ClearThink 1 Acquisition Corp. (CTAA) is all set for its debut on the NASDAQ exchange on February 24. The shares will be offered at a fixed price of $10.00 per share. With a total of 15,000,000 shares available, the company aims to raise approximately $150.00M through this IPO.

FreeCast, Inc. (CAST) will be entering the market with its IPO on March 03, on the NASDAQ exchange. They plan to offer 19,782,084 shares. The company has a market cap of $5.57B.

Eastern Gas Corp Ltd (EGA) is also scheduled to make its debut on the ASX exchange on February 24. They are offering shares at a fixed price of $0.13. The IPO includes 27,500,000 shares, aiming for a deal size of $‪3.65M.

That's it for today. Thanks for reading. Good luck out there!

Best Regards,

Stocks Telegraph Team

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