Dear Readers,

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite surged to new records on Wednesday, continuing their impressive performance in 2024, buoyed by a U.S. consumer inflation report that came in below expectations.

As of 12:13 PM ET, the Dow was up 231.6719 points, or 0.5856%, at $39789.78. The Nasdaq Composite added 179.1172 points, or 0.9776%, at $18501.889. The S&P 500 rose 43.08 points, or 0.8211%, at $5289.77. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 6 showed positive movement, with Information Technology leading the way with a 1.41% increase.

For April, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 0.3%, falling short of the Dow Jones projection of a 0.4% rise. Annually, the CPI grew by 3.4%, aligning with forecasts. The core CPI, which excludes the more volatile costs of food and energy, also met monthly and yearly expectations.

The lighter-than-anticipated inflation data have heightened anticipations of potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. Current trading in Fed funds futures points to a 51.7% probability that the central bank will lower rates at its September session, per the CME FedWatch Tool—up significantly from Tuesday's 44.9% likelihood.

Market dynamics this year have been largely driven by the prospect of reduced Federal rates and excitement over advancements in artificial intelligence, which are expected to enhance profits. Despite this upbeat outlook, the S&P 500, which has climbed over 10% since the start of the year, experienced a slight downturn over the last month due to persistent concerns about entrenched inflation.

Top Movers: Under $10

AEye Inc (LIDR) is up 49.59% today to trade at the current level of $3.68. This comes after the company announced its results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024.

Reliance Global Group Inc (RELI) zoomed 58.36% in today’s trade to $0.43 after announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Spetner Associates.

In current trading, Edible Garden AG Inc (EDBL) stock is at $5.61 following the release of significant 27.6% Year-Over-Year revenue growth for the first quarter of 2024.

T2 Biosystems Inc (TTOO) rose 24.63% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $5.18. The company announced an $8 million private placement priced at the market under Nasdaq Rules.

In the current trading session, WiSA Technologies Inc (WISA) jumped 23.23% to $4.72 over a previous close of $3.83 after reporting that five WiSA E licenses with major brands in each category have been signed and that three additional global brands are currently reviewing the WiSA E licensing agreement.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (HP) 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 $0.42 per share. It has fixed May 17 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on May 31. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.99 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, HP has a trailing yield of 2.60% on the current stock price of $38.24.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is Starbucks Corp. (SBUX), having a market capitalization of $85.48B. It will pay a dividend of $0.57 per share, the payment date of which is May 31. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 2.21%.

Shares of Visa Inc (V) will be the talk of stock market on Thursday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.52 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $1.49 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that V has a trailing yield of 0.53% on the current share price of $280.53.

Chevron Corp. (CVX) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from CVX will amount to $1.63 per share. May 17 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for June 10. In the previous year, CVX distributed a total of $6.16 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for CVX stands at 3.80% based on the current stock price of $162.12.

Unilever plc ADR (UL) will be paying out a dividend of $0.45 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of May 17. Over the past 12 months, UL has paid out a total of $1.86 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, UL boasts an impressive trailing yield of 3.41% on the current share price of $54.42.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Significant claim against FTX EU transferred to FTXcreditor, potentially speeding up bankruptcy proceedings but posing risks to smaller creditors.

• pStAKE Finance introduces a liquid staking solution for Bitcoin, advancing Bitcoin-native DeFi.

• Worldcoin Foundation open-sources secure multi-party computation system for iris biometric cryptocurrency project.

• North Korean entities laundered nearly $150 million in stolen crypto via Tornado Cash privacy protocol in March.

• Bitget aims to establish its on-chain ecosystem, following models of Binance, OKX, and KuCoin exchanges.

• El Salvador mines 474 Bitcoin worth $29 million using volcanic geothermal energy since 2021.

• UK authorities shut down crypto academy over alleged involvement in $1.7 billion crypto "Ponzi" scheme.

Most Shorted Stocks

Arbor Realty Trust Inc. (ABR) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 38.48% 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 17.0. This represents a change of -500000 shares, which corresponds to a -0.68% decrease in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $1.06 billion. The average daily volume stands at 4.53M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $2.76B.

The Zynex Inc with the symbol ZYXI currently has a short interest of 34.82%. The short interest has changed by 210000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 32.9. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $65.16 million. On an average day, 170.57K shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $348.63M.

For the stock Altimmune Inc (ALT), the current short interest is at 31.47%. This represents a significant short interest change of 1940000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +9.52%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 4.9. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $186.29 million.

With the symbol ACB, the stock currently has a short interest of 34.02%. The short interest change is -2870000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -35.26%. It would take approximately 0.7 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $156.39 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 7.71M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $110.27M.

The stock NVAX has a current short interest of 32.00%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +2.65% while there was a change of 1160000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 6.6. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $62.55 million. Trading activity averages at 12.11M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $1.67B.

AI Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Palo Alto Networks Inc (PANW) emerges as a high-quality stock in the AI industry, attaining an impressive score of 52.0. The stock's profitability, and stock sentiment are strong. However, its value is weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of performance, growth, financial strength, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Alibaba Group Holding Ltd ADR (BABA) as a high-quality AI stock today, presenting a Score of 53.0. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability. However, it has weak growth. The value, performance, financial strength, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Adobe Inc (ADBE) has the ST Score of 55.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, and Piotroski Score but weak in value. Performance, growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

UiPath Inc (PATH) stock has the ST Score of 55.0 which implies that the AI company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its growth, financial strength, and stock sentiment, but its weaknesses are in its value. However, it shows a neutral outlook in profitability, performance, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) currently has the ST Score of 53.0, which signifies a huge upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its value and growth. The stock's performance, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.