AI Accelerators: $10 Stocks Racing Through Midday

Stocks dropped sharply on Wednesday, undoing the stock market's recent recovery in April, as new data revealed the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter. This raised concerns that the economy could be slipping into a recession due to President Donald Trump's flurry of policy moves, particularly his actions on trade.

As of 11:13 AM ET, the Dow was down -420.57 points, or -1.0377%, at $40,107.05. The Nasdaq Composite lost -329.4 points, or -1.69%, at $19,215.55. The S&P 500 declined -78.71 points, or -1.42%, at $5,482.12. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 9 showed negative movement, with Energy leading the way with a -1.21% decrease.

Additionally, a separate ADP report pointed to an economic slowdown, with private payroll growth falling to just 62,000 jobs in April, far below economists' expectations of 120,000.

Despite a brief rally earlier in the week, the market sold off again on Wednesday, with the weak GDP data raising concerns that the disruptions from Trump's policies might have already pushed the economy into recession before any significant trade agreements are made. 

Top Movers: Under $10 

Regulus Therapeutics Inc (RGLS) is up 133.95% today to trade at the current level of $7.88. This comes after a merger agreement news.

Jeffs Brands Ltd (JFBR) zoomed 54.01% in today’s trade to $1.31. This rally can be attributed to news of a definitive agreement to sell key U.S. assets.

In current trading, Sharps Technology Inc (STSS) stock is up 22.60% at $6.13 following securing a $400K initial purchase order.

INVO Fertility Inc (IVF) rose 66.15% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $2.67. The strong performance of IVF stock came as investors were encouraged by the company’s 116% annual revenue growth.

In the current trading session, Freight Technologies Inc (FRGT) jumped 12.24% to $1.12 over a previous close of $1.00 as the company secured up to $20 million to create an Official Trump Token ($TRUMP) treasury.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Aon plc (AON) 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 $0.74 per share. It has fixed May 01 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on May 15. Last year, the company distributed a total of $2.70 to its shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, AON has a trailing yield of 0.77% on the current stock price of $350.02.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends tomorrow is VSE Corp (VSEC), having a market capitalization of $2.32B. It will pay a dividend of $0.1 per share, the payment date of which is May 15. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 0.36%.

Shares of Casey's General Stores, Inc (CASY) will be the talk of stock market on Thursday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.5 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $1.93 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that CASY has a trailing yield of 0.42% on the current share price of $457.78.

Plains All American Pipeline LP (PAA) is also set to go ex-dividend tomorrow. The next dividend payment from PAA will amount to $0.38 per share. May 01 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for May 15. In the previous year, PAA distributed a total of $1.33 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for PAA stands at 7.65% based on the current stock price of $17.42.

Lifetime Brands, Inc (LCUT) will be paying out a dividend of $0.04 per share to shareholders holding their shares as of the close of the business hours on the record date of May 01. Over the past 12 months, LCUT has paid out a total of $0.17 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, LCUT boasts a trailing yield of 5.04% on the current share price of $3.37.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Vitalik Buterin outlined Ethereum's 2025 development priorities, focusing on single-slot finality, statelessness, enhanced privacy, and decentralized infrastructure.

• Mantra's CEO John Mullin cited broader industry factors as contributing to the collapse of its OM token, urging exchanges to reconsider their leverage policies.

• FIFA announced plans to launch a new EVM-compatible blockchain to host its NFT collections and fan experiences.

• Vanar Chain introduced an AI-powered compression and data authentication layer to address centralization risks in the crypto industry, including outages like those caused by Amazon Web Services.

• Circle expanded into Africa by partnering with Onafriq to pilot stablecoin settlements across 40 countries, aiming to reduce cross-border payment costs.

Most Shorted Stocks

Rocket Companies Inc (RKT) was one of the most shorted stocks as of latest short interest figures, with 31.58% 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 4.7. This represents a change of 17,930,000 shares, which corresponds to a +69.71% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $558.72 million. The average daily volume stands at 9.85M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $25.58B.

The Applied Digital Corporation with the symbol APLD currently has a short interest of 37.41%. The short interest has changed by 3,340,000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 2.2. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $281.96 million. On an average day, 29.77M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $978.65M.

For the stock Indie Semiconductor Inc (INDI), the current short interest is at 28.24%. This represents a significant short interest change of 4,100,000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +8.22%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 13.2. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $105.76 million.

With the symbol RILY, the stock currently has a short interest of 51.32%. The short interest change is -180,000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of -2.16%. It would take approximately 4.3 days to cover all the short positions. The shares short value is estimated to be around $154.33 million. The company boasts an average daily volume of 1.97M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $87.07M.

The stock CRDF has a current short interest of 36.78%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +17.08% while there was a change of 2,530,000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 14.3. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $22.28 million. Trading activity averages at 1.24M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $181.93M.

AI Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, EPAM Systems Inc (EPAM) emerges as a high-quality stock in the AI industry, obtaining a score of 50. The stock's profitability, financial strength, and Piotroski Score are strong. However, its performance, and growth are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of stock sentiment, and forecast.

Our ST Score also classifies Micron Technology Inc (MU) as a high-quality AI stock today, presenting a Score of 51. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, growth, and Piotroski Score. However, it has weak financial strength. The performance, stock sentiment, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Seagate Technology Holdings Plc (STX) has the ST Score of 52, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, and Piotroski Score. Performance, growth, financial strength, stock sentiment, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

ServiceNow Inc (NOW) 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 financial strength. However, it shows a neutral outlook in growth, stock sentiment, and forecast.

Audiocodes (AUDC) currently has the ST Score of 52, which signifies a notable upward potential. The AI stock's strong points are its profitability, and Piotroski Score, while its weak points are its growth. The stock's performance, financial strength, 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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