Biotech on the Rise: High-Growth Plays & $10 Stock Surprises

 U.S. stocks slid on Thursday, wrapping up the final trading session of the week with renewed pressure on tech shares and a sharp drop in UnitedHealth stock. With markets closed for Good Friday, all three major indexes are set to finish the holiday-shortened week in the red.

As of 11:03 AM ET, the Dow was down -646.6 points, or -1.63%, at $39022.79. The Nasdaq Composite lost -72.11 points, or -0.39%, at $18185.53. The S&P 500 declined -5.55 points, or -0.11%, at $5270.15. Among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors, 6 showed positive movement, with Energy leading the way with a 1.63% increase.

The Dow and Nasdaq have each declined nearly 3% week-to-date, while the S&P 500 is down more than 1%. Investor sentiment remains shaky following former President Trump’s tariff announcement on April 2—a proposal that has since been softened. Still, the S&P 500 has fallen over 6% since then, with the Dow and Nasdaq logging losses of more than 7% each.

Top Movers: Under $10 

Adagio Medical Holdings Inc (ADGM) is up 124.20% today to trade at the current level of $2.07. This comes after the company announced that it has received Breakthrough Device designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its vCLASTM Cryoablation System.

Channel Therapeutics Corporation (CHRO) zoomed 55.38% in today’s trade to $1.95 after announcing the signing of a definitive merger agreement with Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (LGND) to combine Ligand’s wholly owned subsidiaries, Pelthos Therapeutics Inc. and LNHC, Inc. with CHRO Merger Sub Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Channel.

In current trading, SMX (Security Matters) Plc (SMX) stock is at $1.92 after announcing a strategic collaboration with Aegis Packaging, a Singapore-based leader in high-barrier coatings for flexible plastic packaging.

American Resources Corporation (AREC) rose 22.60% in the early hours of today's trading to move at $1.36. The company announced the development of a groundbreaking modular, mobile, and scalable leaching solution.

In the current trading session, Baijiayun Group Ltd (RTC) jumped 67.02% to $0.36 over a previous close of $0.22 after announcing that it has reached a strategic cooperation with Beijing Xinlantian Education Technology Co., Ltd.

Ex-Dividends Stocks

Gladstone Capital Corp (GLAD) is about to trade ex-dividend Monday, meaning that investors who buy the stock after Monday will not be eligible for the next dividend payment. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.17 per share. It has fixed June 20 as the record date for the same and will pay the actual dividend on June 30. Last year, the company distributed a total of $1.96 to its shareholders. Based on last year's worth of payments, GLAD has a trailing yield of 7.98% on the current stock price of $24.58.

Another stock that is shelling out dividends Monday is Gladstone Land Corp (LAND), having a market capitalization of $343.03M. It will pay a dividend of $0.05 per share, the payment date of which is June 30. Currently, the stock is trading at a trailing dividend yield of 5.91%.

Shares of Radius Recycling Inc (RDUS) will be the talk of the stock market on Monday as the stock will turn ex-dividend. The company's next dividend payment will be $0.19 per share, and in the last 12 months, it paid a total of $0.75 per share. Last year's total dividend payments show that RDUS has a trailing yield of 2.58% on the current share price of $29.10.

APA Corporation (APA) is also set to go ex-dividend Tuesday. The next dividend payment from APA will amount to $0.25 per share. April 22 has been designated as the record date for this dividend, with the actual payout scheduled for May 22. In the previous year, APA distributed a total of $1.00 to its valued shareholders. Considering the cumulative dividend payments from last year, the trailing yield for APA stands at 6.51% based on the current stock price of $15.37.

RMR Group Inc (RMR) 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 April 22. Over the past 12 months, RMR has paid out a total of $1.80 per share in dividends. Based on the total dividends paid out last year, RMR boasts an impressive trailing yield of 11.98% on the current share price of $15.02.

Crypto Market Highlights

• Bybit is shutting down more of its Web3 services after previously closing its NFT marketplace earlier in April 

• North Korean hackers linked to the $1.4B Bybit exploit are targeting crypto developers with malware-infected fake recruitment tests, according to The Hacker News.

• Binance is in talks with multiple countries to create strategic digital asset reserves, CEO Richard Teng revealed.

• A US federal judge has paused a lawsuit involving 18 state attorneys general and the DeFi Education Fund against the SEC, pending potential changes in SEC leadership.

• Coinbase has distanced its Base blockchain network from a controversial memecoin it previously shared, which experienced a massive pump-and-dump.

 Most Shorted Stocks

Hims & Hers Health Inc (HIMS) was one of the most shorted stocks as of the latest short interest figures, with 31.74% 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 2.4. This represents a change of 3040000 shares, which corresponds to a +5.55% increase in short interest. The total value of the shares held short is estimated to be around $1.56 billion. The average daily volume stands at 24.85M shares, and the market capitalization of the company is $5.99B.

The AST SpaceMobile Inc with the symbol ASTS currently has a short interest of 29.54%. The short interest has changed by 930000 shares. The days to cover ratio stands at 4.0. The estimated value of the shares held short is approximately $1.08 billion. On an average day, 12.42M shares are traded, with the company's market capitalization totaling $7.09B.

For the stock MARA Holdings Inc (MARA), the current short interest is at 27.81%. This represents a significant short interest change of 710000 shares, corresponding to a short interest percentage increase of +0.76%. The days needed to cover the short positions amount to 2.4. The approximate worth of the shares held short is $1.15 billion.

With the symbol UPST, the stock currently has a short interest of 26.58%. The short interest change is 2130000 shares, compared with a short interest percentage change of +11.65%. It would take approximately 3.3 days to cover all the short positions. The shares' short value is estimated to be around $3.69 billion. The company boasts an average daily volume of 6.31M shares, contributing to a market capitalization of $3.75B.

The stock TEM has a current short interest of 25.45%. The short interest percentage has experienced an increase of +15.98% while there was a change of 2750000 shares in short interest. The ratio indicating the time required to cover short positions is 1.5. The calculated worth of the shorted shares amounts to around $833.95 million. Trading activity averages at 14.32M shares per day, while the company's market capitalization stands at $7.07B.

Biotech Stocks to Watch

According to our ST Score evaluation, Oramed Pharmaceuticals, Inc (ORMP) emerges as a high-quality stock in the Biotech industry, attaining an impressive score of 65. The stock's profitability, performance, and financial strength are strong. However, its stock sentiment and forecast are weak. Additionally, it is neutral in terms of growth, and Piotroski Score.

Our ST Score also classifies Fennec Pharmaceuticals Inc (FENC) as a high-quality Biotech stock today, presenting a Score of 60. The stock has strong fundamentals in terms of profitability, growth, and financial strength. The performance, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast are neutral.

Another stock in the category, Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc (LGND) has the ST Score of 59, which means that the stock carries the potential for higher returns. The stock is strong in profitability, performance, and financial strength. Growth, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast suggest a neutral outlook.

PharmaCyte Biotech Inc (PMCB) stock has the ST Score of 58 which implies that the Biotech company has a high probability of beating the market. The stock's strengths lie in its profitability and financial strength. However, it shows neutral outlook in performance, growth, stock sentiment, Piotroski Score, and forecast.

Quoin Pharmaceuticals Ltd ADR (QNRX) currently has the ST Score of 58, which signifies a huge upward potential. The Biotech stock's strong points are its profitability and performance, while its weak points are its growth and Piotroski Score. The stock's 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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