Stocks are starting the week flat this morning as investors take a break following last week’s big gains. The big news came from Apple today as they announced a quarterly dividend and a share buyback program.
Not a lot of economic data points for investors to look to today. Home builder sentiment came out a few minutes ago and was unchanged in March at 28. This is the highest level since June 2007. Many analysts are looking for the housing industry to follow the rest of the economy and start recovering. The housing industry took the biggest hit during the recession in 2008 and still has a long road to recovery.
A quick look at the major stock indexes show the Dow down 6 points, the Nasdaq up 2 points and the S&P 500 is up 1 point.
NASDAQ Stocks
Ampio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPE) is up 39.18% this morning at $3.73. Ampio stock is rising this morning on a positive preliminary data from its mid-stage trial of its experimental drug to treat retinal swelling in patients with diabetes. AMPE has traded 611 thousand shares so far today, well above its daily average of 114 thousand shares. The company has a market cap of 117.61 million.
Imperial Sugar Company (NASDAQ:IPSU) is climbing 6.64% in early trading at $5.31. IPSU has traded 650 thousand shares already today and trades 900 thousand shares a day on average. Imperial Sugar stock has lost $2 a share since early February and is looking for a turnaround. The company has a market cap of 65.49 million.
Neurocrine Bioscences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) is up 5.29% this morning at $8.96. NBIX has been trading higher since Friday when an analyst with Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on the company and gave it a buy rating with a price target of $15. NBIX has traded 251 thousand shares so far today and trades 575 thousand shares a day on average. The company has a market cap of 596.81 million.
Primo Water Corporation (NASDAQ:PRMW) has jumped 7.28% this morning at $2.21. PRMW is trading heavy volume already today with 450 thousand shares traded, above its daily average of 391 thousand shares. Primo shares are bouncing back today after falling on Friday due to poor quarterly results. The company has a market cap of 52.17 million.
Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:THLD) is up 3.72% today at $7.25. THLD has traded 2.7 million so far this morning and averages 2.8 million shares a day. Threshold stock is seeing a decent pop today as JMP Securities raised its price target on the company to $12 from $7. The company has a market cap of 361.08 million.
Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:KERX) is up 4.01% this morning at $4.67. KERX is rallying on heavy volume today with 1.3 million shares traded. KERX trades over 2 million shares a day on average. Keryx shares have been rallying the past few days ahead of data for perifosine. The company has a market cap of 334.30 million.
Pacific Ethanol, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEIX) is up 3.42% today at $1.21. PEIX has traded 1.6 million shares this morning and trades 5.6 million shares a day on average. PEIX shares have been slowly trading higher over the past few weeks after falling from $1.60 to under $1.10. The company has a market cap of 105.47 million.
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