| Align Technology [ALGN] - Last Close: $339.85 Align is getting a boost after releasing its latest quarterly results. The orthodontics company reported its Q2 report following Wednesday's close, and it surpassed analysts' expectations. Align generated EPS of $2.22 on revenues of $1 billion, beating the consensus of $2.04 EPS on $990.8 million in revenues. The company's Q3 and fiscal 2023 guidance also surpassed the Street's expectations. ALGN is leading the S&P 500 with a 15.7% gain. My Take: ALGN got punished during the 2022 sell off, but it's starting to get its groove back. This stock was trading for upwards of $700 a couple of years ago, so it could have huge upside if it can maintain its positive trend. Celestica [CLS] - Last Close: $16.46 Strong earnings are lifting shares of Celestica in today's premarket. The electronic equipment company reported its Q2 earnings after Wednesday's closing bell, and the results surpassed analysts' expectations. Celestica reported EPS of $0.55 on sales of $1.94 billion; easily topping the consensus of $0.47 on $1.82 billion in sales. The company also boosted its full-year outlook on the news, and its new guidance also outperformed expectations.
CLS is one of the top performers in today's premarket with a 30.3% gain.
My Take: CLS has been on a hot run lately, but it was beginning to encounter some resistance around $16.50. Today's rally could be the final push it needs to get over the hump. Carmel Therapeutics [CTCX] - Last Close: $3.00 A merger deal is boosting shares of Carmel Therapeutics. This morning, the company announced a definitive merger agreement with privately-held Axolotl Biologix. Under the terms of the deal, CTCX shareholders will receive $8 million cash and $57 million worth of CTCX stock on closing. The deal also includes up to $75 million in potential "milestone equity payments" structured as 12% cash and 88% CTCX stock. CTCX is today's top premarket stock with a 46.9% gain, and it's one of this morning's most-traded stocks. My Take: I don't know much about Axolotl, but the market seems to think CTCX landed one helluva deal here. However, the stock had been getting killed prior to this announcement, so be wary of a pullback once this momentum fades. Lipocine [LPCN] - Last Close: $4.30 Lipocine just announced a promising clinical update from a key drug trial. The biopharma firm said a Phase 2 study of LPCN 1148 for the clinical management of cirrhosis met its primary endpoint. LPCN 1148 produced substantial symptom improvements compared to placebo and was well tolerated among patients. Lipocine said it plans to meet with the FDA to discuss a development path to filing a New Drug Application for the drug's approval. LPCN is up 37.4% on elevated trading volume in response to the upbeat clinical data. My Take: This is some much-needed good news for LPCN. It sounds like LPCN 1148 could be on the track to a full approval, which could deliver another catalyst down the road. GainersMallinckrodt PLC [MNK] >> +28.5%Nextracker [NXT] >> +20.0%Titan Pharma [TTNP] >> +16.2%Ultralife [ULBI] >> +28.6%DeclinersMersana Therapeutics [MRSN] >> (73.3%) Yellow Corp [YELL] >> (24.5%)National Vision [EYE] >> (22.1%)TPI Composites [TPIC] >> (18.2%) MasterCard Incorporated [MA] ... AM
AbbVie Inc. [ABBV] ... AM
McDonald's Corporation [MCD] ... AM
Linde Plc [LIN] ... AM
Comcast Corporation [CMCSA] ... AM
Honeywell International Inc. [HON] ... AM
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Bristol-Myers Squibb Company [BMY] ... AM
T-Mobile Us, Inc. [TMUS] ... PM
Intel Corporation [INTC] ... PM Initial jobless claims [Jul] ... 8:30a Durable-goods orders [Jun] ... 8:30a GDP (advanced report) [Q2] ... 8:30a Advanced U.S. trade balance in goods [Jun] ... 8:30a Advanced retail inventories [Jun] ... 8:30a Advanced wholesale inventories [Jun] ... 8:30a Pending home sales [Jun] ... 10:00a | 