The major market indexes traded up 1% or more in the noon hour Wednesday, ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks and the results of the FOMC’s comments on interest rates. A rate hike is predicted for November, and analysts are going to be combing through Powell’s remarks for verification of those expectations.<\/p>\n
Wednesday’s leading gainer at noon was SoFi Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SOFI). The stock received a boost from a new Buy rating and a raised the 12-month price target of $25 per share. Jefferies analyst John Hecht thinks SoFi’s margins are going to rise as it moves its customers to higher-cost products. SoFi’s freemium-like model has paid off for such tech biggies as Spotify, where the free tier leads to more subscribers\/customers. As long as SoFi adds new members, Hecht expects this approach to boost revenues by 46% every year through 2025.<\/p>\n
The only other double-digit gainer Wednesday morning was Aterian Inc. (NASDAQ: ATER). The company has no news, and, as we pointed out in the morning, retail investors seem to have generated the much-loved short squeeze on a stock where more than 60% of shares were shorted at the end of August. That kind of imbalance practically begs for a squeeze, and that is what the long investors (characterized on Reddit’s WallStreetBets as hedgies).<\/p>\n
Among stocks not having such a good day is TMC the metals company Inc. (NASDAQ: TMC). The stock traded down more than 20% in the noon hour for no apparent reason. On Tuesday the company announced that a former drillship has arrived in Rotterdam, where it will be the first (TMC hopes) classified as a subsea mining vessel by the American Bureau of Shipping. The ship is rated as an ultra-deepwater vessel, meaning it could operate at ocean depths greater than 10,000 feet.<\/p>\n
Another double-digit loser Wednesday was Workhorse Group Inc. (NASDAQ: WKHS). The company announced in the morning that it is suspending further deliveries of its battery-electric van and recalling 41 vehicles it already has shipped. The recalled vehicles require additional testing and modifications to meet federal safety standards. In February, Workhorse lost a bid to build thousands of delivery vehicles for the U.S. Postal Service and the company has never gotten its mojo back.<\/p>\n
SoFi traded up about 11.2% in the noon hour Wednesday to $16.88. The stock’s 52-week range is $11.80 to $28.26. The average daily trading volume is around 20 million, and 40 million had been traded so far on the day.<\/p>\n
Shares of Aterian traded up 11.5% to $14.49, in a 52-week range of $3.04 to $48.99. The average daily trading volume is around 17.2 million shares, and more than 49 million had already traded today.<\/p>\n
TMC stock was down nearly 22%, at $7.19 in a 52-week range of $6.75 to $15.39. Nearly 20 million shares have changed hands so far on the day, compared to a daily average of about 15.8 million.<\/p>\n
Workhorse traded down about 9.3% to $7.43, in a 52-week range of $7.05 to $42.96. The low was posted earlier Wednesday morning. The average daily trading volume on the stock is around 9.5 million shares, and 15.2 million had already traded today.<\/p>\n
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