After finishing last week at record highs, stocks mostly closed higher on July 8, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite reaching new record closes, as investors look ahead to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony and fresh inflation data due Thursday.
Let’s examine the top-performing and worst-performing stocks of the week and what influenced their movements.
Top Performers
Macy’s, Inc. (M)
c shares climbed around 10% on Friday, buoyed by news of a potential acquisition. An investor group aiming to purchase Macy’s recently increased its bid following previous unsuccessful offers. The Wall Street Journal reported that Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management have reportedly raised their buyout offer for Macy’s by about $300 million to $6.90 billion.
The new proposal offers $24.80 per share for the Macy’s stock they do not already own, an increase from the $24 per share offer made in March. Earlier, Arkhouse, which has a 4.4% stake in the department store chain, had raised the offer price to $24 per share from $21.
In April, Macy’s appointed two new independent directors, Richard Clark and Richard L. Markee, to its board selected by the activist investment firms. These two board members are currently heading a committee to explore a potential sale that would privatize the retailer.
The heightened interest and increased bid offer by an activist investor group to purchase the retailer have significantly boosted investor confidence in Macy’s lately, driving up the stock price. M’s stock has soared more than 5% over the past five days.
Koss Corporation (KOSS)
Koss Corporation’s (KOSS) shares surged more than 25% on Friday. Moreover, the stock has been up around 79% over the past five days and has gained nearly 144% over the past month. This significant spike in KOSS’ shares can be attributed to continued retail investor interest.
With a market cap of $99.46 million, Koss Corporation is known for its high-fidelity headphones, wireless Bluetooth® speakers, computer headsets, and related accessories. The headphone maker was among the stocks lifted in the recent meme-stock frenzy fueled by the return of meme-stock influencer Keith Gill, also known as “Roaring Kitty,” to social media.
Several Reddit and X users speculated that a post by Gill signaled his interest in the company. Some followers of Keith Gill pointed to cryptic images he posted in May featuring a microphone against the backdrop of the U.S. flag. The image was displayed as an emoji that scrolled across the end of a video, sparking enhanced social media speculation.
However, some Reddit users remained skeptical, noting that the U.S. flag emoticon featured a microphone, not headphones.
“There are absolutely no fundamental reasons why this company might be worth four times what it was at the beginning of the week,” stated Steve Sosnick, market strategist at Interactive Brokers, at the end of last week.
Sharps Technology, Inc. (STSS)
Sharps Technology, Inc. (STSS) saw its shares surge by about 11% on Friday. Last Wednesday, STSS, a prominent medical device and pharmaceutical packaging company, announced two purchase orders for approximately 1 million SecureGard ultra-low waste smart safety syringes produced at its manufacturing facility in Hungary. This positive development has sparked investor interest, leading to a notable increase in the stock price.
Sharps Technology aims to establish a long-term, strategic partnership with the customer, a leading Swiss-based global provider of cosmetic, dental, and ophthalmic injectable therapies. The first shipment of 100,000 syringes is set for the third week of July, with additional deliveries planned throughout the rest of 2024.
The initial orders for the 1mL SecureGard syringes mark the first step in a collaboration that will leverage Sharps’ innovative technology, comprehensive drug delivery solutions, and development expertise to support the customer’s expanding product offerings.
Due to rapid market growth amid the growing need for innovative injection solutions and the impact of the tariffs, recalls, and quality issues with Chinese-supplied syringes, STSS is witnessing increasing interest levels and potential demand for its high-quality, innovative safety syringe products. High product demand is expected to boost the company’s growth and profitability.
Worst Performers
NIO Inc. (NIO)
NIO Inc.’s (NIO) shares fell by nearly 6% on Friday after its Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Steven Wei Feng, resigned effective July 5, 2024. The announcement of Feng’s departure from NIO for personal and family reasons has raised concerns among investors about the company’s financial stability and leadership continuity, leading to a decline in the stock price.
Feng will be succeeded by insider Stanley Yu Qu, who joined the China-based electric automaker in October 2016 and earlier served as a Senior Vice President of Finance.
XPeng Inc. (XPEV)
XPeng Inc.’s (XPEV) shares slumped around 7% on Friday. In addition, its shares are down more than 5% over the past five days. On July 1, XPEV, a pioneer in the premium smart electric vehicle market, released its vehicle delivery results for June and the first half of 2024.
XPEV delivered 10,668 Smart EVs last month, up 24% year-over-year and an increase of 5% from May. With XPENG X9’s deliveries of 1,687 units in June, nearly 13,143 units have been sold just half a year after its launch, maintaining its impressive streak as the top seller in both the all-electric MPV and three-row model segments in China. Overall, the company delivered 52,028 Smart EVs during the first half of 2024, up 26% from the year-ago period.
However, Xpeng’s delivery numbers did not meet market expectations, leading to a negative response from investors. This underperformance has resulted in a decrease in XPEV’s stock price, reflecting concerns about the company’s growth and competitive position in the electric vehicle market.
Eshallgo Inc. (EHGO)
Eshallgo Inc. (EHGO) experienced an approximately 12% drop in its share price on Friday. Moreover, the stock has plunged more than 35% over the past five days. On July 3, EHGO, a leading office solution provider based in China, announced the closing of its initial public offering (IPO) of 1,250,000 Class A ordinary shares at a public offering price of $4 per Class A ordinary share.
The company received aggregate gross proceeds of $5 million from the offering. Additionally, Eshallgo granted the underwriters of the offering an option to purchase up to an additional 187,500 Class A ordinary shares at the public offering price, minus underwriting discounts and commissions. This option is exercisable within 45 days from the date of the underwriting agreement.
However, the significant decline in share price post-IPO suggests that the market is less optimistic about EHGO’s prospects, causing investors to sell off their shares.
