US stocks had a mixed opening on Wednesday, after varying earnings from the likes of Netflix and Johnson & Johnson followed a tech rally towards the close of play on Tuesday afternoon.
Oil, gold and Bitcoin were all slightly higher in early morning trading.
Wednesday’s trending stocks are:
Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX)
This streaming giant’s shares are down in the dumps in early trading on Wednesday after it reported its first drop in subscriber numbers for more than a decade. The first quarter saw the company lose around 200,000 subscribers, leading the company to indicate that it would crack down on account sharing across multiple households.
Meanwhile, revenue increased by just under 10% compared to the same period 12 months prior, though this represents a deceleration in growth. This deceleration is expected to continue in the second quarter, while subscriber numbers are similarly on course to continue falling.
A letter from Netflix to shareholders said:
“Streaming is winning over linear, as we predicted, and Netflix titles are very popular globally. However, our relatively high household penetration — when including the large number of households sharing accounts — combined with competition, is creating revenue growth headwinds.”
Wednesday morning has seen NFLX shares plummet by more than 30%. The news also appears to have sent the share price of fellow subscription streaming service operators, like Disney and Spotify, dropping lower.
Allovir Inc (NASDAQ: ALVR)
This biotechnology outfit is buoyant on Wednesday morning after the US Food and Drug Administration granted regenerative medicine advanced therapy designation to its lead investigational multi-virus-specific T cell therapy, posoleucel, for protection from six different viruses.
This designation is designed to improve the pace of approval for regenerative medicines, offering benefits such as increased opportunities to meet with FDA officials and early meetings to discuss potential surrogate or intermediate endpoints.
This is the third RMAT designation granted to Allovir’s posoleucel therapy, while the European Medicines Agency has granted the therapy priority medicines designation. The company’s share price was up by 45% on Wednesday.
Sono Group NV (NASDAQ: SEV)
This German solar car manufacturer is generating chatter on Wednesday, with its share price having rocketed by almost 70% during the day before’s trading.
This leap came after the company reported its full year earnings, which outlined how it has commenced commercialization of its technology. Sono Group CEO and co-founder Laurin Hahn said:
“We have achieved major milestones on our growth path. We’re scaling up our Sono Solar business, have delivered several products to B2B customers in the last months, and thus generated first revenues.
“Our proprietary solar technology is already contributing to climate protection and the reduction of CO2 emissions on Munich public transport and supporting the city’s clean air targets. These examples showcase our plan to diversify our business by establishing our B2B solar business as a strategic pillar, equal to our solar electric vehicle, the Sion.”
On Wednesday morning, Sono Group shares had dropped back a little, falling by 6% in early trading.
I-Mab (NASDAQ: IMAB)
Chinese biotech outfit I-Mab is buoyant this morning amid reported buyout interest. According to reports from the likes of Bloomberg, the business is attracting attention from pharmaceutical giants in Europe and North America.
Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the company was considering routes such as a merger or partnership. Considerations are understood to be at an early stage, but any deal could offer I-Mab an escape from the regulatory scrutiny that has plagued Chinese firms which have listed on foreign exchanges.
I-Mab shares were up by 12% on Wednesday morning.
Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ARCT)
This RNA medicines specialist has seen its share price tank in early trading after a trial for its COVID-19 vaccination candidate reached its primary endpoint. The candidate achieved 95% efficacy against severe cases but just 55% efficacy overall.
The company’s president and CEO Joseph Payne said the company was “pleased” with the results and called them a “key milestone”, but they have evidently left investors unimpressed. The company said it is steering the candidate towards a pivotal booster study which will involve 2,400 participants.
Arcturus shares were down by around 23% on Wednesday morning.