Midday Spotlight: Standout AI Stocks & $10 Rising Stars

U.S. stocks delivered a mixed performance on Wednesday as investors sifted through earnings from Morgan Stanley and others, hoping to spark a rebound to record highs after Tuesday’s ASML-induced selloff.

As of 11:33 AM ET, the Dow was up 182.93 points, or 0.428%, at $42923.36. The Nasdaq Composite lost -24.57 points, or -0.1219%, at $20135.2529. The S&P 500 rose 7.92 points, or 0.1362%, at $5823.17. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 7 showed positive movement, with Utilities leading the way with a 1.14% increase.

Adding to the cautious tone, disappointing earnings from ASML, UnitedHealth Group, and luxury leader LVMH have tempered Wall Street’s optimism. Investors are now bracing for key earnings from Abbott, Alcoa, and Discover Financial Services to see if cracks are forming in the bullish outlook.

Meanwhile, in the commodities space, gold surged toward record highs as uncertainty over the U.S. presidential race deepened following new tariff promises from Republican nominee Donald Trump. Markets are watching closely, and the stakes couldn't be higher. 

Top Movers: Under $10

Versus Systems Inc (VS) is up 313.96% today to trade at the current level of $4.76. This comes after the company announced the execution of two significant agreements with Aspis Cyber Technologies, Inc.

180 Life Sciences Corp (ATNF) zoomed 483.88% in today’s trade to $8.88. The company’s interim CEO, Blair Jordan, issued letter to stockholders and provided update on newly acquired Gaming Technology Platform.

In current trading, Renovaro Inc. (RENB) stock is at $0.86 after announcing that it is restructuring leadership to focus on its AI Platform, RenovaroCube, for multi-cancer detection and monitoring.

Scilex Holding Company (SCLX) rose 26.24% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $1.02 after its board has authorized management to explore options to maximize the value of Scilex Pharma, including a spinoff, public listing outside the U.S., or a strategic transaction.

In the current trading session, Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp (PHIO) jumped 25.00% to $3.45 over a previous close of $2.76 after announcing that it is presenting data about its INTASYL compound PH-894 at the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy's (ASGCT's) 2024 Advancing Gene and Cell Therapies for Cancer conference.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

EOG Resources, Inc. (EOG) 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 $0.91 per share. It has fixed October 17 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on October 31. Last year, the company distributed a total of $3.54 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, EOG has a trailing yield of 2.79% on the current stock price of $127.17.

Shares of Dime Community Bancshares Inc (DCOM) will be the talk of stock market on Thursday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.25 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $1.00 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that DCOM has a trailing yield of 3.20% on the current share price of $31.28.

Franklin Universal Trust (FT) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from FT will amount to $0.04 per share. October 17 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for October 31. In the previous year, FT distributed a total of $0.51 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for FT stands at 6.73% based on the current stock price of $7.58.

Gabelli Utility Trust (GUT) will be paying out a dividend of $0.05 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of December 13. Over the past 12 months, GUT has paid out a total of $0.59 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, GUT boasts an impressive trailing yield of 11.31% on the current share price of $5.18.

Crypto Market Highlights

• James Howells has filed legal action against Newport City Council in a bid to retrieve his Bitcoin-filled hard drive lost in a landfill over a decade ago.

• The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) recommends modifications to the EU's cryptocurrency regulatory framework, MiCA, urging the European Commission to update key aspects.

• The Open Network Foundation has chosen Axelar’s Mobius Development Stack (MDS) to integrate The Open Network (TON) with 68 blockchain networks. 

• Bitcoin's price hit a two-and-a-half-month high, rising nearly 10% over the past week to exceed $68,200, coinciding with former President Donald Trump’s election-winning odds. 

• Grayscale has filed with the SEC to convert its $520 million cryptocurrency fund into an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

  Most Shorted Stocks

MGP Ingredients, Inc. (MGPI) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 30.71% 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 24.2. This represents a change of 80000 shares, which corresponds to a +1.90% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $348.08 million. The average daily volume stands at 176.49K shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $1.78B.

The Sunshine Biopharma Inc with the symbol SBFM currently has a short interest of 30.40%. The short interest has changed by 148600 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 2.3. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $1.1 million. On an average day, 164.83K shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $3.61M.

For the stock Fangdd Network Group Ltd (DUO), the current short interest is at 6.20%. This represents a significant short interest change of 4567200 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +460.03%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 0.4. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $7.39 million.

With the symbol LUCY, the stock currently has a short interest of 36.18%. The short interest change is 600 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of +0.65%. It would take approximately 0.1 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $39.87 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1.60M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $11.26M.

The stock ABR has a current short interest of 32.41%. The short interest percentage has experienced decrease of -3.64% while there was a change of -2310000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 16.4. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $1.45 million. Trading activity averages at 2.93M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $2.92B.

AI Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Iron Mountain Inc. (IRM) emerges as a high-quality stock in the AI industry, attaining an impressive score of 54. The stock's performance, and Piotroski Score are strong. However, its profitability, and growth are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies NICE Ltd ADR (NICE) as a high-quality AI stock today, presenting a Score of 54. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak performance, and growth. The stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, ServiceNow Inc (NOW) has the ST Score of 54, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score but weak in financial strength. Growth, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Medtronic Plc (MDT) stock has the ST Score of 53 which implies that the AI 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 growth, and financial strength. However, it shows neutral outlook in stock sentiment, and forecast.

Digital Realty Trust Inc (DLR) currently has the ST Score of 52, which signifies a huge upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its financial strength. The stock's performance, growth, stock sentiment, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.

Best Regards,
Stocks Telegraph Team