Midday Update: Top Biotech Movers & $10 Value Contenders

The Dow Jones Industrial Average bounced back on Thursday after enduring its 10th consecutive loss, marking its longest losing streak since 1974.

At 11:40 AM ET, the Dow was up 281.32 points, or 0.66%, at $42608.2. The Nasdaq Composite added 109.4 points, or 0.5158%, at $21318.7141. The S&P 500 rose 43.84 points, or 0.7466%, at $5916.01. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 8 showed negative movement, with Energy leading the way with a 2.08% decrease.

Heading into Wednesday’s rate decision, Wall Street had been counting on the Federal Reserve to maintain an aggressive stance on lowering borrowing costs, which impacts everything from corporate capital expenses to consumer loans for homes and cars. However, the Fed’s revised outlook triggered a sharp selloff.

On Wednesday, the Dow plunged 1,123.03 points (2.58%) to close at 42,326.87, while the S&P 500 fell 2.95%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 3.56%. The losses put the Dow on track for its worst weekly performance since March 2023.

Treasury yields also surged, with the 10-year yield climbing to 4.566% on Thursday after spiking more than 13 basis points to surpass 4.50% in the wake of the Fed’s final meeting of the year.

Top Movers: Under $10

Trio Petroleum Corp (TPET) is up 265.91% today to trade at the current level of $3.00. This comes after the company announced a non-binding Letter of Intent to acquire a 100% working interest in petroleum and natural gas properties from Novacor Exploration Ltd. in the Lloydminster, Saskatchewan heavy oil region.

Bio-Path Holdings Inc (BPTH) zoomed 181.76% in today’s trade to $1.88 after reporting that results from preclinical studies of BP1001-A for obesity demonstrated enhanced insulin sensitivity, confirming BP1001-A as a potential treatment for obesity and related metabolic diseases in Type 2 diabetes patients.

In current trading, Soho House & Co Inc (SHCO) stock is at $7.67 following news that it received an offer to buy the company at a premium to its current market value.

Glimpse Group Inc (VRAR) rose 39.69% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $4.47. The company announced that its subsidiary company Brightline Interactive, LLC has entered into an initial six-figure dollar contract with the U.S. Navy for an Immersive Simulator, to be delivered in the first half of 2025.

In the current trading session, Personalis Inc (PSNL) jumped 30.34% to $4.64 over a previous close of $3.56 after announcing agreements with long time collaborators Merck and Moderna that accelerate the advancement of the company’s business strategy.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Carrier Global Corp (CARR) 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 $0.19 per share. It has fixed December 20 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on February 07. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.76 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, CARR has a trailing yield of 1.13% on the current stock price of $67.52.

Shares of New York Mortgage Trust Inc (NYMT) will be the talk of the stock market on Friday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.2 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.80 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that NYMT has a trailing yield of 13.30% on the current share price of $6.01.

Paccar Inc (PCAR) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from PCAR will amount to $0.33 per share. February 12 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for March 05. In the previous year, PCAR distributed a total of $1.17 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for PCAR stands at 1.09% based on the current stock price of $107.27.

Vistra Corp (VST) will be paying out a dividend of $0.22 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of December 20. Over the past 12 months, VST has paid out a total of $0.86 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, VST boasts an impressive trailing yield of 0.63% on the current share price of $138.00.

Crypto Market Highlights

• The Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision (BayLDA) has issued corrective measures for World (formerly Worldcoin) over its handling of biometric data.

• The Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has updated its crypto regulations, introducing new requirements for crypto-related marketing by virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and social media influencers.

• Hut 8, one of North America's largest Bitcoin miners, has purchased $100 million worth of Bitcoin, bringing its total holdings to over $1 billion. 

• The percentage of Ethereum validators supporting an increase to the network’s gas limit has risen to 10%, as the community pushes for a higher transaction gas limit per block.

• Binance.US, Binance's US-based arm, plans to resume US dollar services early next year, as interim CEO Norman Reed announced.

Most Shorted Stocks

Eos Energy Enterprises Inc (EOSE) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 26.85% 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 8.4. This represents a change of 1170000 shares, which corresponds to a +2.04% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $246.87 million. The average daily volume stands at 7.39M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $919.59M.

The Coherus Biosciences Inc with the symbol CHRS currently has a short interest of 26.66%. The short interest has changed by -2320000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 6.0. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $47.0 million. On an average day, 5.19M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $176.86M.

For the stock Novavax, Inc (NVAX), the current short interest is at 24.83%. This represents a significant short interest change of -1730000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage decrease of -4.17%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 6.6. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $343.7 million.

With the symbol SPCE, the stock currently has a short interest of 25.29%. The short interest change is -320000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -4.46%. It would take approximately 4.1 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $238.28 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1.70M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $172.96M.

The stock KXIN has a current short interest of 26.92%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +142.46% while there was a change of 248300 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 0.3. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $11.17 million. Trading activity averages at 1.67M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $2.76M.

Biotech Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Fennec Pharmaceuticals Inc (FENC) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Biotech industry, attaining an impressive score of 67. The stock's profitability, growth, and financial strength are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of performance, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Pharming Group N.V. ADR (PHAR) as a high-quality Biotech stock today, presenting a Score of 61. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, performance, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak financial strength. The growth, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, PTC Therapeutics Inc (PTCT) has the ST Score of 63, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability and performance. Growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, Piotrowski score, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Protagonist Therapeutics Inc (PTGX) stock has the ST Score of 62 which implies that the Biotech 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 a neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Roivant Sciences Ltd (ROIV) currently has the ST Score of 62, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Biotech stock's strong points are its profitability, performance, financial strength, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its growth. The stock's 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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