Dear Readers,

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks surged, marking the commencement of the final trading week of the year on a positive note. Traders were eager to wrap up 2023 with strength and optimism.

Wall Street entered this holiday-shortened week with notable momentum, propelled by the S&P 500's impressive eighth consecutive weekly advance – its lengthiest winning streak since 2017.

Mirroring this achievement, the Dow and Nasdaq Composite also secured eight-week winning streaks.

As the week unfolded, the S&P 500 approached record levels, standing at less than 1% below its closing all-time high recorded in January 2022 at 4,796.56.

These upward movements align with investor enthusiasm fueled by recent data indicating a closer trajectory to the Federal Reserve's 2% inflation target. The anticipation of potential rate cuts has further buoyed equities in recent weeks, contributing to the positive sentiment on the market.

As of 11:46 AM ET, the Dow was up 115.7227 points, or 0.3095%, at $37501.69. The Nasdaq Composite added 72.8828 points, or 0.4344%, at $16850.287. The S&P 500 rose 15.7603 points, or 0.3315%, at $4770.39. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 10 showed positive movement, with Utilities leading the way with a 0.74% increase.

Top Movers: Under $10

Inspira Technologies Oxy B.H.N. Ltd (IINN) is up 48.74% today to trade at the current level of $1.77. This comes after the company announced a significant advancement in its sensor technology by its team of experts.

Gracell Biotechnologies Inc ADR (GRCL) zoomed 59.69% in today’s trade to $9.89 after announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by AstraZeneca.

In current trading, Volcon Inc (VLCN) stock is at $0.14 after the company provided an important update and clarification regarding the development of its eagerly anticipated Stag model.

60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals Inc (SXTP) rose 42.05% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $1.28. The company announced the approval of an Investigational Review Board (IRB) sanctioned Phase IIA clinical study.

In the current trading session, MicroAlgo Inc (MLGO) jumped 12.18% to $1.83 over a previous close of $1.63 after announcing a Bitcoin trading prediction algorithm based on machine learning and technical indicators.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

American Tower Corp. (AMT) 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 $1.7 per share. The company has fixed December 28 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on February 01. Last year, the company distributed a total of $6.39 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, AMT has a trailing yield of 2.97% on the current stock price of $215.15.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is CME Group Inc (CME), having a market capitalization of $77.01B. It will pay a dividend of $5.25 per share, the payment date of which is January 18. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 4.11%.

Shares of Northern Oil and Gas Inc. (NOG) will be the talk of stock market on Wednesday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.4 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of $1.43 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that NOG has a trailing yield of 3.70% on the current share price of $38.53.

Xcel Energy, Inc. (XEL) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from XEL will amount to $0.52 per share. December 28 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for January 20. In the previous year, XEL distributed a total of $2.08 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for XEL stands at 3.33% based on the current stock price of $62.42.

Spirit Realty Capital Inc (SRC) will be paying out a dividend of $0.67 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of December 28. Over the past 12 months, SRC has paid out a total of $2.68 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, SRC boasts an impressive trailing yield of 6.09% on the current share price of $43.96.

Crypto Market Highlights

Most Shorted Stocks

SciSparc Ltd (SPRC) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 5.11% 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 0.1. This represents a change of 118300 shares, which corresponds to a +1,690.00% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $0.59 million. The average daily volume stands at 2.14M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $11.50M.

The Eos Energy Enterprises Inc with the symbol EOSE currently has a short interest of 23.88%. The short interest has changed by -2950000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 6.4. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $46.43 million. On an average day, 6.29M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $235.87M.

For the stock TG Therapeutics Inc (TGTX), the current short interest is at 26.15%. This represents a significant short interest change of -690000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage decrease of -1.88%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 6.4. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $599.15 million.

With the symbol TSVT, the stock currently has a short interest of 25.40%. The short interest change is -360000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -2.92%. It would take approximately 5.8 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $136.86 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 2.05M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $192.96M.

The stock CMND has a current short interest of 26.35%. The short interest percentage has experienced increase of +50.43% while there was a change of 47400 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 0.1. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $35.13 million. Trading activity averages at 1.13M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $4.97M.

EV Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Magna International Inc. (MGA) emerges as a high-quality stock in the EV industry, attaining an impressive score of 59.0. The stock's profitability, performance, stock sentiment, and Piotroski Score are strong. However, its growth, and financial strength are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of value, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Rivian Automotive Inc (RIVN) as a high-quality EV stock today, presenting a Score of 58.0. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of performance, financial strength, and stock sentiment. However, it has weak profitability, and Piotroski Score. The value, growth, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, GreenPower Motor Company Inc (GP) has the ST Score of 54.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in performance, and stock sentiment but weak in value, and Piotroski Score. Profitability, growth, financial strength, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Beam Global (BEEM) stock has the ST Score of 53.0 which implies that the EV company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its financial strength, and stock sentiment, but its weaknesses are in its value, and profitability. However, it shows neutral outlook in performance, growth, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

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