Stocks on a Budget: Mid-Day Movers Below $10!

On Thursday, the stock market experienced declines, deepening the losses observed throughout the week. This downward trend was accompanied by a rise in Treasury yields to levels not seen in years, driven by the Federal Reserve's intention to maintain higher interest rates for an extended duration.

These developments followed the Federal Reserve's announcement the previous day, where they chose to keep interest rates unchanged but indicated the likelihood of another rate hike by year-end. Furthermore, the central bank suggested that there would be fewer rate cuts in the coming year, reflecting its commitment to maintaining elevated rates due to persistent inflationary pressures.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, in response to the decision, mentioned that a soft landing for the economy remained a possibility but was not his primary scenario.

This week, the technology sector bore the brunt of the market losses as investors reevaluated their interest in growth-oriented stocks amidst the backdrop of high interest rates. Notable tech giants such as Tesla, Alphabet, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia experienced declines on Thursday.

As of 11:37 AM ET, the Dow was down -149.3906 points, or -0.4338%, at $34291.49. The Nasdaq Composite lost -174.6318 points, or -1.1666%, at $14795.291. The S&P 500 declined -42.9502 points, or -0.9757%, at $4359.25. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 11 showed negative movement, with Energy leading the way with a -0.95% decrease.

Top Movers: Under $10

Near Intelligence Inc. (NIR) is up 26.89% today to trade at the current level of $0.27. This comes after the company announced that it is a trusted partner of leading global commercial real estate (CRE) companies seeking high-quality real estate analytics on any location, building or site.

Safe & Green Holdings Corp. (SGBX) zoomed 18.99% in today’s trade to $1.88 following the declaration of a partnership with CORNERSTONE Charitable Foundation, to construct a schoolhouse in Cape Coast, Ghana.

In current trading, Kaival Brands Innovations Group Inc. (KAVL) stock is at $0.54 after receiving initial royalty payment from Philip Morris International following increased international sales.

Sigma Additive Solutions Inc. (SASI) rose 5.67% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $0.20. The company announced reverse stock split to regain Nasdaq compliance and facilitate recently announced strategic transactions.

In the current trading session, Powerbridge Technologies Co. Ltd. (PBTS) jumped 5.49% to $0.22 over a previous close of $0.21 after announcing a significant step in its global expansion efforts through a strategic partnership with a prominent global smartphone provider.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (ARCO) 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 $0.05 per share. The company has fixed September 25 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on September 28. Last year, the company distributed a total of $0.22 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, ARCO has a trailing yield of 2.23% on the current stock price of $9.88.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. (GGAL), having a market capitalization of $3.80B. It will pay a dividend of $0.12 per share, the payment date of which is October 02. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 0.61%.

Shares of Portland General Electric Company (POR) will be the talk of stock market on Friday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.48 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of $1.90 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that POR has a trailing yield of 4.40% on the current share price of $43.15.

Heartland Express Inc. (HTLD) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from HTLD will amount to $0.02 per share. September 25 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for October 05. In the previous year, HTLD distributed a total of $0.08 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for HTLD stands at 0.52% based on the current stock price of $15.53.

Crypto Market Highlights

Most Shorted Stocks

Omeros Corporation (OMER) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 20.07% 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 20.9. This represents a change of 520000 shares, which corresponds to a +4.49% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $35.85 million. The average daily volume stands at 559.21K shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $191.15M.

The Cinemark Holdings Inc. with the symbol CNK currently has a short interest of 21.47%. The short interest has changed by 150000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 8.6. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $420.17 million. On an average day, 2.65M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $2.16B.

For the stock Aehr Test Systems (AEHR), the current short interest is at 20.9%. This represents a significant short interest change of -314,395 shares. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 6.08. Trading activity maintains a daily average of 1.11 million shares, with the company's market capitalization currently at $1.24 billion.

The stock KSS has a current short interest of 20.02%. The short interest percentage has experienced increase of +7.61% while there was a change of 1490000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 5.4. Trading activity averages at 3.69M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $2.36B.

Biotech Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Acasti Pharma Inc. (ACST) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Biotech industry, attaining an impressive score of 57.0. The stock's performance, and growth are strong. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of value, profitability, financial strength, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

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

Another stock in the category, Ovid Therapeutics Inc. (OVID) has the ST Score of 59.0, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in performance, financial strength, and stock sentiment. Value, profitability, growth, piotroski score, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

Innoviva Inc. (INVA) stock has the ST Score of 58.0 which implies that the Biotech company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its valuation, profitability, and performance, but its weaknesses are in its financial strength. However, it shows neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

InflaRx N.V. (IFRX) currently has the ST Score of 55.0, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Biotech stock's strong points are its performance, growth, and financial strength, while its weak points are its value, and Piotroski Score. The stock's profitability, stock sentiment, and forecast indicate a neutral outlook.