Midday Market Watch: EV Movers to Watch & $10 Underdog Stocks

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is on the brink of history, eyeing its first nine-day losing streak since the 1970s. This downturn began just after the Dow closed above the 45,000 milestone earlier this month.

As of 11:33 AM ET, the Dow was down -265 points, or -0.6062%, at $43452.49. The Nasdaq Composite lost -86.57 points, or -0.3918%, at $22010.082. The S&P 500 declined -22.07 points, or -0.36%, at $6052. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 6 showed negative movement, with Utilities leading the way with a -1.06% decrease.

Interestingly, the broader market remains resilient. The S&P 500 hit a fresh high on December 6 and sits less than 1% below that mark, while the Nasdaq notched a record close on Monday.

Adding to the tension, November’s retail sales beat expectations on Tuesday, raising further questions about whether the Fed’s rate cut is necessary.

Top Movers: Under $10

Nukkleus Inc (NUKK) is up 436.69% today to trade at the current level of $7.46. This comes after the company announced that it has successfully acquired a 51% controlling stake in Star 26 Capital Inc., a defense acquisition company holding 95% ownership in RIMON.

Syntec Optics Holdings Inc (OPTX) zoomed 105.06% in today’s trade to $3.65 after announcing the appointment of Michael J. Ransford as Site Manager.

In current trading, Portage Biotech Inc (PRTG) stock is at $6.16 following news that it has entered into a Letter of Intent with Immunova, LLC,a private Connecticut-based biotechnology company.

eHealth Inc (EHTH) rose 33.52% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $7.29. The company provided commentary on its Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) performance and updated guidance ranges for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024.

In the current trading session, Petros Pharmaceuticals Inc (PTPI) jumped 36.70% to $0.37 over a previous close of $0.27 after announcing a shift in its corporate strategy to focus on the development of its proprietary technology platform as a prospective Rx-to-OTC switch solution across a multitude of conditions and existing Rx only therapies.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Salesforce Inc (CRM) 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 $0.4 per share. It has fixed December 18 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on January 09. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.20 to its shareholders. Based on last year's payments, CRM has a trailing yield of 0.34%, and the current stock price is $353.94.

Shares of Mercer International Inc (MERC) will be the talk of the stock market on Wednesday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.07 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.30 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that MERC has a trailing yield of 4.61% on the current share price of $6.50.

Telefonica S.A ADR (TEF) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from TEF will amount to $0.11 per share. December 18 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for January 10. In the previous year, TEF distributed a total of $0.32 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for TEF stands at 7.48% based on the current stock price of $4.34.

Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc (TR) will be paying out a dividend of $0.09 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of December 18. Over the past 12 months, TR has paid out a total of $0.35 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, TR boasts an impressive trailing yield of 1.09% on the current share price of $32.34.

Crypto Market Highlights

• United States President-elect Donald Trump met with Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek at Mar-a-Lago to discuss potential policies impacting the cryptocurrency industry.

• Cryptocurrency exchanges in Europe continue to support Tether’s USDt stablecoin despite Coinbase's announcement to delist it for European customers due to regulatory compliance.

• Pyth Network, an oracle provider, will launch real-time oil market data feeds for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent Crude Oil, expanding its decentralized data offerings.

• Tether is strengthening its presence in Europe's stablecoin market with an investment in Malta-based StablR, announced on Dec. 17.

• Bybit will suspend withdrawal and custody services for French users starting Jan. 8, 2025, amid increased regulatory scrutiny by French financial authorities.

Most Shorted Stocks

Cassava Sciences Inc (SAVA) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 35.67% 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 3.5. This represents a change of -920000 shares, which corresponds to a -5.09% decrease in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $45.3 million. The average daily volume stands at 5.08M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $127.01M.

The Interactive Strength Inc with the symbol TRNR currently has a short interest of 50.62%. The short interest has changed by 227900 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 0.3. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $0.89 million. On an average day, 1.29M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $2.66M.

For the stock Altimmune Inc (ALT), the current short interest is at 32.94%. This represents a significant short interest change of 590000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +2.58%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 7.7. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $196.58 million.

With the symbol BYND, the stock currently has a short interest of 46.09%. The short interest change is 250000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of +0.90%. It would take approximately 10.5 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $88.33 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 2.88M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $245.73M.

The stock TMDX has a current short interest of 27.68%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +3.45% while there was a change of 310000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 5.3 Days to Cover. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $1.82 billion. Trading activity averages at 1.81M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $2.17B.

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 53. The stock's profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of performance, growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Baidu Inc ADR (BIDU) as a high-quality EV stock today, presenting a Score of 52. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak performance and growth. The financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Fluence Energy Inc (FLNC) has the ST Score of 52, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in growth, financial strength, and Piotroski Score but weak in performance. Profitability, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Aptiv PLC (APTV) stock has the ST Score of 50 which implies that the EV company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, and Piotroski Score, but its weaknesses are in its performance, and financial strength. However, it shows a neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

BorgWarner Inc (BWA) currently has the ST Score of 55, which signifies a huge upward potential. The EV stock's strong points are its profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its financial strength. The stock's 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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