Midday Movers: Energy Power Plays & Top Stocks Breaking Out

The S&P 500 edged higher on Friday, capping off a strong week for markets fueled by upbeat earnings momentum and fresh trade optimism. Investors are now turning their attention to next week’s packed earnings schedule, with over 150 S&P 500 companies — including tech heavyweights like Meta Platforms and Apple — set to report.

As of 11:25 AM ET, the Dow was up 60.19 points, or 0.1347%, at $44754.11. The Nasdaq Composite added 46.08 points, or 0.2%, at $23265.94. The S&P 500 rose 15.09 points, or 0.24%, at $6378.44. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 6 showed negative movement, with Financials leading the way with a -0.44% decrease.

Markets have also been buoyed by recent international trade moves. President Donald Trump announced a major trade agreement with Japan, featuring 15% “reciprocal” tariffs, while confirming progress on a U.S.–Indonesia trade framework. With the administration’s August 1 tariff deadline approaching, traders are closely watching for any last-minute developments.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is preparing to meet next week, with expectations high that policymakers will hold interest rates steady at their current 4.25% to 4.5% range.

Top Movers: Under $10 

Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp (PHIO) is up 13.94 today to trade at the current level of $2.86. This comes after the company announced an agreement with U.S. Manufacturing Source for Drug Substance.

Linkhome Holdings Inc (LHAI) zoomed 70.16% in today’s trade to $9.58 after announcing the pricing of an upsized $6,000,000 initial public offering.

In current trading, Fusion Fuel Green Ltd (HTOO) stock is at $6.36 after announcing new LPG projects for subsidiary Al Shola Gas.

AEye, Inc. (LIDR) rose 67.39% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $5.88 after the lidar system specialist announced a significant collaboration with the AI darling Nvidia (NVDA)

In the current trading session, Garden Stage Ltd (GSIW) jumped 23.21% to $0.13 over a previous close of $0.11 after announcing $4.2 million registered direct offering.

Ex-Dividend Stocks

Northern Technologies International Corp (NTIC) is about to trade ex-dividend Wednesday, meaning that investors who buy the stock after Wednesday will not be eligible for the next dividend payment. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.01 per share. It has fixed July 30 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on August 13. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.22 to its shareholders. Based on last year's worth of payments, NTIC has a trailing yield of 2.75% on the current stock price of $8.01.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends on Thursday is AGNC Investment Corp (AGNC), having a market capitalization of $9.79B. It will pay a dividend of $0.12 per share, the payment date of which is August 11. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 15.00%.

Shares of Alliant Energy Corp (LNT) 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 $0.51 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $1.97 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that LNT has a trailing yield of 3.04% on the current share price of $64.87.

RBB Bancorp (RBB) is also set to go ex-dividend on Thursday. The next dividend payment from RBB will amount to $0.16 per share. July 31 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for August 12. In the previous year, RBB distributed a total of $0.64 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for RBB stands at 3.40% based on the current stock price of $18.83.

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) will be paying out a dividend of $1.36 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of July 31. Over the past 12 months, TXN has paid out a total of $5.38 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, TXN boasts an impressive trailing yield of 2.91% on the current share price of $184.61.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Sharplink hires a former BlackRock executive as competition intensifies among public companies holding Ether in their treasuries.

• Vietnam launches a national blockchain platform to support its growing digital ecosystem.

• Nigeria SEC Director-General announces openness to stablecoin businesses that comply with local regulations.

• Ripple USD, initially pitched as an enterprise-focused stablecoin, is now gaining popularity among retail users.

• Christie’s UK is reportedly launching a new division to facilitate real estate purchases using cryptocurrency.

Most Shorted Stocks

Hertz Global Holdings Inc (HTZ) was one of the most shorted stocks as of the latest short interest figures, with 19.35% 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 3.3. This represents a change of 1310000 shares, which corresponds to a +2.33% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $426.7 million. The average daily volume stands at 9.30M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $2.30B.

The KalVista Pharmaceuticals Inc with the symbol KALV currently has a short interest of 19.10%. The short interest has changed by 2250000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 8.5. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $129.88 million. On an average day, 1.12M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $763.29M.

For the stock Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Inc (TARS), the current short interest is at 23.17%. This represents a significant short interest change of 750000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +9.25%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 13.6. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $367.6 million.

With the symbol FL, the stock currently has a short interest of 18.35%. The short interest change is -1300000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -7.69%. It would take approximately 2.7 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $223.54 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 5.62M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $2.41B.

The stock ASPI has a current short interest of 24.48%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +3.87% while there was a change of 570000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 4.6. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $160.16 million. Trading activity averages at 3.98M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $860.57M.

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

Our ST Score also classifies Scorpio Tankers Inc (STNG) as a high-quality Energy stock today, presenting a Score of 61. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak growth. The performance, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Imperial Oil Ltd (IMO) has the ST Score of 62, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. Growth, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

International Seaways Inc (INSW) stock has the ST Score of 62 which implies that the Energy company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. However, it shows neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Dorchester Minerals LP (DMLP) currently has the ST Score of 52, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Energy stock's strong points are its profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its performance. 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

P.S. Want my daily watchlists sent to your cell phone too? Join our WhatsApp Exclusive Community for real-time alerts on hot stocks. Stay ahead with instant updates and exclusive insights!